National Art Month February 2026 Part II: Ecological Art Evolution in Our Times. "Earth, the beautiful place we call home, needs some Tender Loving Care, through art.

National Art Month February 2026 Part II

Ecological Art Evolution in Our Times

"Earth, the beautiful place we call home, needs some Tender Loving Care, through art."- avr

Paintings and Artworks by Dr Abe V Rotor

1. "Life is a journey but once in time and space."

Painting and Poem by Dr Abe V Rotor

Scenery of a happy life in acrylic on canvas (58” x 34”) by AV Rotor 2019

Life’s in the seasons passing and returning;
How familiar when we are young, how we miss
When old we grow, leave the place for another.
Oh, how we love the seasons like passing breeze.

Life’s in the sea, unfathomed and mysterious;
How familiar the changing tides and beaches,
The waves rolling incessantly with our dreams.
Oh, how we love the sea the life it teaches.

Life’s in the rocks rising from the ocean deep;
How familiar their shapes, their majestic height,
Deep within the secret of life’s origin.
Oh, how we love the mountains in pure delight.

Life’s in the endless sky, deep blue or in gloom,
How familiar faces and figures in shroud,
The sun’s chariot takes us to Mount Olympus;
Oh, how we love the sky, praise we sing aloud.

Life’s a journey but once in time and space;
How familiar our goal likened to a mirth
In a scene imagined, redeemed from the Fall.
Oh, how we love to re-create life on earth. ~

2. Bouquet

Painting in acrylic, AVR

Bouquet - how extreme:
how happy, how sad,
how deceitful, how holy,
how tame, how mad!

Bouquet - how fresh,
picked for vase or lei;
how withered when gone
across the bay.

Bouquet - how fragrant
across the hall;
how lavish in summer,
how dearth in fall.

Bouquet - how missed
the bee, the butterfly
in the garden, the rainbow
an arch of sigh.~

3. Lawin

Wildlife in acrylic painting by AV RotorIn less than a human lifetime, dozens of wildlife species have rebounded from the brink of extinction - and are establishing their territory on the countryside and in suburbs. Thanks to growing consciousness in wildlife protection and ecological conservation worldwide, despite massive and wanton destruction of wildlife habitats, and unabated pollution in air, water and land that threaten these and other species.

Painting of a lawin on a basketball backboard by the author

On a clear day we may see the lawin hovering over our subdivision, alone or with a partner in dalliance, simply gliding and circling up in the sky, in a spectacular kind of show that this bird now categorized as threatened is still around. Its home is the La Mesa watershed, just across our subdivision.

3. An Evening Guest - A Giant House Spider!

Dr Abe V Rotor

In my room one peaceful evening came a spider*.
Welcome, gladly I said, as it paused for a moment
on drawings on the wall my grand children** made,
its legs tapping a message for whatever it meant.

Ah, you are an artist too, I guessed, as it moved
along and across swiftly I thought it would fall,
Instead it embraced a make-believe companion;
I looked into this creature a mirror on the wall.

* Giant house spider (Aratigena africa) is also known as Wolsey spider (Tegenaria parietina), sometimes referred to as Cardinal spider, named after Cardinal Wolsey during the time of Henry VIII of England. Giant house spiders have been recently classified under genus Aratigena.

** Pastel drawings by the author's grandchildren at their ancestral home in San Vicente, Ilocos Sur, circa 2016. Mackie, now 14, drew this geometric figure of a spider.

4. "The poetry of the earth is never gone."

- John Keats

Nature mural on a wall by Dr Abe V Rotor

Details of mural for analysis and critiquing.

"When nature shall then be gone,

like Paradise lost after the Fall,

a make-believe mural on a wall rises,

beautiful in the setting sun." - avr

Art Evolution

5. Golden Castle Ruin

Dr Abe V Rotor

"All that is gold does not glitter."
- J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings

Golden Castle Ruin, art work by the author, made of driftwood treated with latex emulsion, waterproof plastic glue, cured, and sprayed in layers with gold paint. This art work may serve as a corner or top table figurine, or mounted with a painting background appropriate to its theme as shown in this photo. (18"x13") AV Rotor 2026

"Gold, the most obsessed possession, my friend,
if not lost, simply turns into a ruin at the end." - avr

* Golden Castle Ruins can refer to several places, most prominently the Eternal Golden Castle (Anping Fort) in Tainan, Taiwan, a historic fort with park-like grounds, and the Golden Castle tower ruins in Golden, County Tipperary, Ireland, a medieval structure by the River Suir. Acknowledgement with gratitude: Excerpt AI Overview, Internet, Living with Nature book series by AVRotor

6. Wooden Trash Bin Art

"Little thrash, if any, makes austere living a joy. "- avr

Dr Abe V Rotor

Project of a group of students from Ilocos Sur National High School. The project is a pair of movable wooden trash bins. These bins may be converted into potted plant holders, instead of just "waste receptacles," thus create an ambiance of natural beauty in the surroundings. Appropriately the bins have been installed ISHS library by the students themselves in coordination with their teachers and library staff.

The finished project is a pair of wooden bins originally designed for such purpose, not until a consensus was reached, with the suggestion of the author, to emphasize aesthetics as functional beauty vis-a-vis conventional use.

Some basic rules of beauty in a place -
remind us of our home in every aspect;
like wishing to be treated by another
with courtesy, discipline. and respect.

Cleanliness is next to godliness, Dad said,
a strict reminder, and not just a ploy,
to keep trash out, or not to waste at all;
little, if at all, makes austere living a joy.

Eight faces (sides) of the project as shown individually, scenarios of nature in a contiguous unity as may be desired. The bins may be arranged in pairs, side by side, tangential, or separated at a viewing distance. Varied combinations of the scenarios break monotony in many choices, virtually bringing Nature into the place, so to speak.

7. Nativity in the Forest

"... for lack of a manger for the spirit of modern man,

to find here a Child and protect the green altar." - avr

Dr Abe V Rotor

Nativity Scene, Christmas 2012. Forest mural by the author, 2010

Creatures in the forest welcome a holy guest:
the wild and tough wake up to a stirring,
the feathered and furred, the mimicked and camouflaged,
follow a beam of light in a clearing.

It is an altar hemmed by a cathedral of giant trees,
curtained by the living art of the vine;
and marked by emergent towers, the home of the eagle
that proclaims the birth of a child divine.

Woodsmen there who live in communities ever since,
join their children sing the songs of the trees,
fiddling crickets and hooting owls and playful primates,
the wind tamed into the whisper of the breeze.

Here the sun is sieved into moving shadows and art,
the rains nourish life from ground to the sky,
epiphytes of liana and orchid in grandiose bloom,
shower the newly born, birds singing up high.

How benevolent the wild, how humble the creatures,
how simple the scene created by nature;
here beauty is simple, unspoiled by civilization,
it offers comfort and refuge and nurture.

Unconventional the forest seems the bastion of faith
for those seeking life's meaning here and far,
for lack of a manger for the spirit of modern man,
to find here a Child and protect the green altar. ~

8. Twelve Attributes of Nature's Classroom

"Earth and sky, woods and fields, lakes and rivers, the mountain and the sea, are excellent schoolmasters, and teach some of us more than we can ever learn from books." - John Lubbock.

Abe V Rotor, PhD

Nature's Classroom in acrylic (20"x28") by the author, with RJ Ramos

Living with Nature Center, San Vicente, Ilocos Sur, October 30, 2025

Nature's classroom - free of walls and borders, sans timepiece and calendar, where land, sky and water meet and blend, over the horizon, far as the eye can see;

Nature's classroom - where trees are living pillars of a temple, firm and strong, against time and space, force majeure, seasoned throughout history, to ad infinitum;

Nature's classroom - seat of knowledge and wisdom, evolving into movements and schools, integral and holistic, devotional and humanitarian, with solid foundation;

Nature's classroom - where early scholars founded an intelligible world - Socrates' philosophy, Plato's academy, Aristotle's natural history, Confucius' filial piety;

Nature's classroom - alma mater of naturalists Thoreau, Attenborough, Goodall, Cousteau, Quisumbing, Irwin, Darwin et al, forerunners of today's Natural Science;

Nature's classroom - seat of adventure of boys Huck and Tom in Mark Twain novels, of Tarzan, Robinson Crusoe, Heidi, of nature movies, Secret Garden, Sound of Music, etc;

Nature's classroom - concert hall of birds and insects, singers Nora. Lea, Regine; setting of Beethoven's and Abelardo's music; Amorsolo's and Luna's paintings,

Nature's classroom - where teaching resources are varied and universal, in situ and hands-on, experiential, compatible with methods of research, education and extension;

Nature's classroom - outdoor link to cyber communication that wires the four corners of the globe into a network, reaching out homes, establishments and communities;

Nature's classroom - a corner of lost Eden on the backyard and landscape, recreating the biblical scene, in functional beauty, through man's regard as guardian of creation;

Nature's classroom - domicile of mankind, brief and minuscule to the vast universe, in Blake's humility, "the world a grain of sand, heaven a wild flower, eternity an hour.."

Nature's classroom - arena where man aims at the finest level of being a Homo sapiens (thinker), Homo faber (maker) Homo ludens (player), and Homo spiritus (spiritual), rolled in one. ~

Details of painting

Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better. - Albert Einstein

Left photo, author (with cap), poses with Ronleych Joshua Ramos (center) and his dad.

Right photo, author wife, Mrs Cecille Rotor joins the group.

“Children more than ever, need opportunities to be in their bodies in the world – jumping rope, bicycling, stream hopping and fort building. It’s this engagement between limbs of the body and bones of the earth where true balance and centeredness emerge.” ~ David Sobel

In honor of the participants to the

Dr Arturo B Rotor Memorial Awards for Literature

9. Nature, Peace, Faith

Three Great Doctors*

Nature-doctor, guardian of the environment’s pristine beauty

and bounty; Peace-doctor, emissary of unity and harmony;

Faith-doctor, keeper of body-mind-spirit integrity.

Dr Abe V Rotor

Nature, Peace, Faith - Three Great Doctors in acrylic by AVRotor, 2024

Nature, Peace, Faith

Three Great Doctors

Health of people, the greatest wealth of society, hangs on nature’s beauty and bounty, of man living in peace and harmony, with deep faith in the Almighty and humanity;

Nature, Peace, Faith – they build a formidable triad, staked to the ground, firm and proud, for eons of time through ease and odd, in the benevolent hands of God;

This is the world once called Paradise in bible story, where Nature, Peace, Faith, long reigned in glory, and man anointed in his own rationality, serving as steward as a sacred duty;

A gift divine and singular over all creation, taking over creation itself with his own notion, in search of the Good Life through exploitation, pitting man against man, nation against nation.

And now man is asking God for more, as condition to obedience, defying the dictates of his conscience, at a crossroad in our Postmodern times. Whom can we depend on, where is man in his finest hour?

I asked God for more

I asked God for food, clothing and shelter
and He showered me
these necessities I cannot live without -
they are the Earth's bounty;
I settled down on fertile hills and valleys
and multiplied freely.

I asked God for power to boost my strength,
and He gave me energy;
I leveled the mountains, dammed the rivers
and conquered the sea;
raped the forests, prairies, lakes and estuaries,
a world I wanted to be.

I asked God if I can be God, too, all knowing
with my technology;
broke the sacred code of life and of matter,
changed the Great Story;
annihilated life unfit in my own design,
and set my own destiny.

I asked God if He is but a creation of the mind,
and rose from my knee;
probed space, rounding up the universe,
aiming at immortality,
bolder than ever, searching for another home,
and wanting to be free.

Many a self-proclaimed soul rose to the throne, fame they sought in the “grandeur that was Rome,” and the “glory that was Greece” syndrome, In unending quest but found at the end emptiness like foam.

Breakthroughs in science and technology the genius of man on the untrodden road to be happy and free; beauty he builds, and himself destroys beauty at rainbow’s end on a bended knee.

Nature-doctor, guardian of the environment’s pristine beauty and bounty; Peace-doctor, emissary of unity and harmony; Faith-doctor, sans fantasy, keeper of body-mind-spirit integrity;

And man the disciple of Hippocrates, takes the helm of a great journey, with Matthew’s 25 compassion, carries on a sacred duty, with the dictum, “health of one is health of the world" in joy and piety;

In Frankl's search for meaning, Schweitzer's mission, the "Lady with a Lamp" passion;

dedication of our own hero even in exile - these and other models, elevate the medical profession to a vocation.

Four Attributes of Man
Reflection and Meditation

It is I, Homo sapiens, the thinking man
who changed the concept of creation,
Nature to serve man,
master and guardian.

It is I, Homo faber, the maker,
wilderness to tame, resources to harness,
untouched these are,
they go to waste.

It is I, Homo ludens, the playing man,
forest to hunt, mountain to climb,
work and leisure to me
keep my sanity.

It is I, Homo spiritus, the praying man,
mysteries I submit, mistakes I atone,
I, too, have a heart that bleeds,
the essence of being human. ~

Detail of painting, Nature, Peace, Faith

Painting & poem by the author dedicated to the Dr Arturo B Rotor

Memorial Awards for Literature Foundation, and the Philippine

College of Physicians, during the 3rd awarding ceremonies,

October 17, 2024 at UNILAB Mandaluyong City, Metro Manila.

"We must have something to cling to.
Some things must not change.”

– Dr Arturo B Rotor
Arturo Belleza Rotor (June 7, 1907 – April 9, 1988) was a Filipino medical doctor, civil servant, musician, and writer. Rotor was born in the Philippines and attended the University of the Philippines. He graduated simultaneously from the Conservatory of Music and the College of Medicine. He trained further at John Hopkins University's medical school, publishing a paper on a rare form of hyperbilirubinaemia (jaundice) now known as "Rotor syndrome".

During World War II, Rotor served as executive secretary of the Philippine Commonwealth government-in-exile under Manuel L. Quezon, the Philippine president in exile. In the immediate post-World War II period, he was appointed secretary of the Department of Health and Welfare. Later, Rotor was director of the University of the Philippines' Postgraduate School of Medicine and was a practicing physician until the early 1980s.

Rotor was an internationally respected writer of fiction and non-fiction in English. He is widely considered among the best Filipino short story writers of the twentieth century. He was a charter member of the Philippine Book Guild; the guild's initial publication (1937) was Rotor's The Wound and the Scar, despite Rotor's protests that someone else's work should have been selected. In 1966, the Philippine government recognized his literary accomplishments by awarding him the Republic Cultural Heritage Award. Rotor's best-known literary works are The Wound and the Scar (1937), Confidentially, Doctor (1965), Selected Stories from the Wound and the Scar (1973), The Men Who Play God (1983), and the short stories "Dahong Palay" (1928) and "Zita" (1930).

He was an orchid fancier and breeder, a long-time member of the Philippine Orchid Society, and is the namesake of a Vanda orchid species (Vanda merillii var. rotorii). Rotor shared an interest in orchids with his younger brother, Gavino B. Rotor, Jr. Gavino took this interest even further, receiving his Ph.D. from Cornell University on orchid biology and becoming an authority on orchid propagation. The orchid genus Rotorara is named after Gavino. Rotor was a highly accomplished musician and published music critic.

Rotor died in 1988 due to cancer, and was survived by his wife Emma Unson, who taught college mathematics and physics. They had no children.

Reference: Arturo Belleza Rotor (Internet)

-------------------------

* Article and painting are lovingly dedicated to the PCP Foundation, founder and guardian of the Dr Arturo B Rotor Memorial Awards for Literature. Philippine College of Physicians Foundation is the social service arm of Philippine College of Physicians. Founded in 2008, PCP Foundation values social service and envisions a healthier Filipino nation through partnerships to co-create health-centric innovative solutions. 0917 654 8710 secretariat@pcpfoundation.com

10. A Landscape of Life

"A landscape that is viewed with the power of the mind, heart and spirit, be it real or abstract - yet it gives meaning to reverence to our Creator."- avr

Dr Abe V Rotor

Biosphere in acrylic by Dr. AV Rotor, (2’x5’) 12-8-14

A landscape that gains back clarity and focus, though slowly, from strained vision of light and shadow, fast moving cars and blinking screens;

A landscape that gets frayed nerves back to function in reflexes governed by the conscious and unconscious mind in peace and harmony;

A landscape that restores freshness and purity of the primary colors, and expresses the full colors of the rainbow with the hand, paint and canvas;

A landscape that makes forests lush green, distant mountains blue, trees in autumn in hues of yellow to red, and the sky azure as the deep sea;

A landscape that brings back consciousness to watch migrating birds in the sky, fish in the stream, and a drop of pond water teeming with life;

A landscape that sets the biological clock attune with the passing of seasons, and to understand the mystery of Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring;

A landscape that is courageous to face force majeure and patient enough to bear the brunt as the landscape gains back its health and beauty;

A landscape that witnesses the transformation of a swamp into grassland and woodland in an orderly fashion that spawns biological diversity;

A landscape that establishes niches and bridges of past and present, tradition and modern, living and the non-living, in Rousseau’s scenery;

A landscape that soothes noise into joyous sound, bleating and thunder as part of a Beethoven’s composition, chirping a language of praise;

A landscape that releases us from confinement in Plato’s Allegory to face the realities of the world, which is the essence of education;

A landscape that is viewed with the power of the mind, heart and spirit, be it real or abstract - yet it gives meaning to reverence to our Creator;

A landscape that lifts the curtain and opens a horizon on which each one of us passes but once, an experience more than destiny and eternity. ~

11. "The Wall"

Wall Mural and Poem by Dr Abe V Rotor

"The only way to break down walls is to build bridges." - Unknown

"The Wall" in acrylic by the author at his residence in San Vicente, Ilocos Sur 2025

The wall - low enough to see the other side;
high enough to hide what is inside;
Intramuros, Hadrian, and the Great Wall,
seemingly formidable 'til their fall.

The wall - prison inside, freedom outside;
power and wealth it cannot hide;
the Bastille, Jericho, the once Berlin Wall,
history tells of their common fall.

The wall - symbol of man's dream and pride;
defying the rise and fall of tide,
immortality, time, and destiny of the soul.
far beyond the wall lies his goal.

The wall - nature's defence at times tried,
proudly stands on the guardian's side;
for the safety of all creatures, big and small.
in unity and harmony as a whole.

The wall - man's test of his duty to abide,
now and always, far and wide;
of nature's ways and not his own control;
for there's no need of wall after all.

The wall - living fort of trees on the hillside,
tall grasses on the meadow hide,
like coral reefs and levees on the shoal,
niches to the living, home for all.

The wall - rainbow in the sky we once cried
with joy, the greatest gift to a child,
lives forever in our mind, heart and soul,
paves our way to our final Goal. ~

“Men build too many walls and not enough bridges.”- Isaac Newton

Hanging wall, detail

"The wall - nature's defence at times tried,

proudly stands on the guardian's side..."

"Sometimes you put walls up not to keep people out, but to see

who cares enough to break them down." - Socrates

Details of wall mural

"The wall - living fort of trees on the hillside,
tall grasses on the meadow hide..."

“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters

compared to what lies within us.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

12. A Hut by a Pond on Mt Pulag

Dr Abe V Rotor

Hut by a Pond. On-the-spot painting on Mt Pulag, Benguet by AVR (1985) inspired by Henry David Thoreau, 18th century American philosopher who left town and lived alone in a forest clearing for more than a year. Here he wrote Walden Pond, a treatise between man and his society.

This is an art lesson of freedom, peace and tranquility, and of unspoiled landscape; feeling of being on top of the world.

The title alone tells a story. It is picturesque. Here one imagines himself to be in a simple hut made of grass, wood and stone which shelters a woodsman and hunter on Mt. Pulag in Benguet, the second highest mountain in the Philippines after Mt. Apo.

There are no other buildings; no road, except a trail. The trees on the mountain side are small, gnarled and stunted by wind, nonetheless they make a green carpet on the whole mountain. Nearby trees display the season of autumn. Plants grow around the pond, but there are few large and floating ones, unlike in the lowlands. Instead, the water is rich in algae and small aquatic vegetation.

Stones cushions the shores of the pond, larger ones riprap the edge of the water. Fish abound - big and small - splashing and rippling. As gentle wind blows, waves gently lap on the shore in hushing sound.

The ambiance is therapeutic. Feel the cold wind that sends the ripening leaves to the ground. The ground is littered with fresh golden to red leaves. Feel the great comfort the hut gives you after a long day hike, and how soothing is the cool and clear water.

When everything is still the water reflects the sky. Sometimes a breeze comes along, followed by drizzle, then everything is quiet. Enjoy stillness. It is a rare experience to one who has been living in the city, to one who has been busy in school or office.

Draw first the mountain top, then the pond and hut. Fog plays hide-and-seek with the sun. Now and then it casts light and shadow in different patterns on the landscape, and makes a prism on the water, and a rainbow in the sky. Each view is momentary, the whole mountainscape is ever changing, colors are kaleidoscopic, now and then the world stands still.

Take time; this is independence and freedom, meditation and reflection.

Selections from the sound track of The Sound of Music provide an ideal musical background. Try indigenous music of the Cordilleras. Follow the instructions earlier presented in the other two exercises. Enjoy your travelogue on Mt. Pulag.

13. The Lost White Dove*

The Lost White Dove in acrylic (12"x16") by AV Rotor 2025

"Emissary of peace and love,
lost and lonely this little dove."

*A call for peace in war-torn Israel-Gaza-Iran, and Russia-Ukraine -
a call to other war zones as well. ~
14. Wounded Pigeon - Wounded Peace
Pigeon felled by air gun found refuge in the author's backyard.
It soon recovered from its wounds and became a pet of the family.

Pigeons and doves are one, having a common genetic origin,* and seeing them around reminds us of peace, the universal yet elusive message to mankind which they carry throughout the world.

The dove of Noah that monitored the receding flood water in the bible, and today's doves and pigeons on people's parks, both lift the human spirit out of its low ebb of hope and happiness.

Cooing, their characteristic calling and singing, breaks silence and fills the emptiness of the landscape and treetops - and on listening to this peculiar sound, makes us feel we are not alone.

They build their nests on trees, grassy fields, old homes, and any conceivable place where they can find food, security, comfort, company and peace, which they themselves carry and share.

They fill the sky to the delight of everyone, alight on some places to mingle with people in their leisure, perch on mandala or haystacks, glean on newly harvested fields and on the roadside.

They make good pets, and we train them to become part of our games and sports, thanks to their domestic traits, agility and homing instinct - from racing to carrying our messages.

They make perfect specimens in the laboratory, from Charles Darwin's study of evolution to BF Skinner's experiment on conditioned learning, numerous researches notwithstanding.

Wounded Peace painting in acrylic showing details, by AVRotor 2020

*Pigeons and doves belong to the same family of birds (Columbidae), which consists of more than 300 species of birds.

15. Mythical Forest

“What we are doing to the forests of the world is but a mirror

reflection of what we are doing to ourselves and to one another.”

― Chris Maser, Forest Primeval: The Natural History of an Ancient Forest

Painting and Verse by Dr Abe V Rotor

Mythical Forest in acrylic by the author, 2022

She saw only the trees, not the forest;
spots of red, not the loving pair,
flowers, orchids, fluttering butterflies,
and the peeping sunset but a glare.

Thus we see ourselves more than others,
Narcisian* syndrome we've fallen,
leaving but Echo reverberating and dying;
the forest, the lake all forsaken.

*In Greek mythology proud Narcissus fell into the lake and died

leaving Echo whose love for him was unrequited.

Art Evolution

16. Baobab Syndrome: Death of a Planet

Dr Abe V Rotor

Art work by the author from caked emulsion paint and tree seedling skeleton, mounted on open frame for laboratory study, and as a wall decor, too.

* The phrase "Baobab Syndrome: Death of a Planet" appears to be a metaphorical reference to the classic novel The Little Prince, where unchecked baobab growth threatens to destroy a small planet. It also alludes to the real-world, climate change-related deaths of ancient African baobab trees that are currently occurring at an alarming rate. Acknowledgement with gratitude: Internet photos and Excerpt AI Overview

17. Enigma of the Coral Reef
No ecosystem in the world is more vast, open
and free than the coral reef.

Dr Abe V Rotor
Living with Nature School on Blog

Colorful fish among seaweeds, acrylic painting on glass by the author

  Enigma of the Coral Reef in acrylic paintings by Dr Abe V Rotor
Don a snorkel and a new world unfolds - the coral reef.

It is a forest under the sea, the counterpart of the forest we know on land. There are also equivalent trees like the giant Sargassum that grows several feet long; shrubs like the branching Gracillaria; cacti like the broad Padina; annuals like spongy Codium. Together with sea grasses, these seaweeds form multi-storey greenery at varying depths the same way forests have the features of mountains, hills, caverns and cliffs.
The animals that live here are more varied and colorful than those on land, mimicking the prism of sunlight in water with all the splendor of the rainbow. There are fishes that are distinctly bright colored, and at night exude phosphorescence like neon lights. They borrow the shape of their surroundings, the corals and seaweeds, for both protection and aggression - all these are adaptations for survival.

On the coral reef food chains have more links, so to speak, and food webs more intricate, as both residents and transient organisms interact. No ecosystem in the world is more vast, open and free than the coral reef. It is also the most lavish. Even beauty itself. Living things and all their ornaments are irresistible to be awed and respected, holding an enigma that expands our imagination to fantasy that lures us to the sea and to love to fish and comb the reefs all day. To write poetry - and to paint. ~

Enigma of the Coral Reef, details in acrylic by the author

18. Art Evolution in the Garden
Dr Abe V Rotor

"Freedom with nature rests on oneness with creation." - avr

Cactus bonsai, dwarf Agave and overhanging striated Oregano grouped in a recycled PET container make a miniature garden. The setup gets occasional watering and sunlight exposure on weekly maintenance. Mural background lends a three-dimensional effect to heighten a make-believe nature scene in the receiving area, porch or hallway, as may be preferred. Artwork and mural by the author.

"Man-Heaven-and-Earth," in this order,
a rule in garden and floral arrangement;
man is first, though humbly in-between;
because beauty lies in his own judgment.

Hanging chime plays with the breeze at the doorway of the Center. Nature painting as background adds quaintness, and enhances the ambiance of the place. A wooden head of a deer with real anthers has a strong and urgent message of wildlife conservation.

"Art is never finished, only abandoned." — Leonardo da Vinci

Natural curtain adds coolness and aesthetic beauty, besides increasing Oxygen level around and through the window. Ornamental plants also serve as buffer against noise, radiation and dust, and repellant against pest as well.

A green house sans walls
of concrete like prison;
freedom with nature rests
on oneness with creation

"Art isn't a result; it's a journey. The challenge of our time is to find a journey
worthy of your heart and your soul." - Seth Godin

  19. Tree of Thorns and Beads
On display at the Living with Nature Center
San Vicente, Ilocos Sur

Dr Abe V Rotor

Artwork made of wild thorny cherry and rosary beads
against a mural background. (5 ft tall)  AV Rotor 2025.

One afternoon I saw a leafless cherry tree
standing all alone is my home garden;
It's autumn, I said, yet monsoon wasn't over;
I imagined a scene of the lost Eden.

Days passed and my tree remained leafless;
its menacing thorns looked like its crown;
I imagined how a proud tree looks in its prime,
and a bright red rose in the morning sun.

In the sunset years of life, the cherry and rose,
carry on their lesson in sweet memory,
their thorns adorned with gems and medals,
as symbol of man's piety and glory.
"A rose's rarest essence lives in the thorn."- Rumi -
* In life, thorns symbolize hardships, challenges, pain, and suffering, contrasting with the beauty of roses (joy/success), teaching resilience, humility, and growth, often representing necessary obstacles that strengthen faith, provide course correction, or test our character, as seen in biblical and philosophical contexts. They signify that struggles make positive moments more meaningful and can be catalysts for spiritual or personal development. AI Overview

20. Find a Peaceful Respite with Nature
Dr Abe V Rotor

"I go to nature to be soothed and healed, and to have my senses put in order". Rachel Carson

Respite with Nature in acrylic (24" x 48") by AV Rotor 2015
When city living becomes prosaic and dull in the midst of so-called progress measured by affluence; when the good life doesn't bring genuine freedom and happiness - have a respite with Nature;

When you have reached the peak of your career, but you're not in good health and cheerful disposition in life; when in the midst of company you feel all alone and a stranger; have a respite with Nature;

When you are overtaken by grief and loneliness, stranded on the low ebb of life, rise up and continue on living, and when you shall have coped up with the pace of change, slow down, look back and have a respite with Nature;

When responsibility and accountability demand your decision and action, and the consequences are the potential hallmark of your career and person, take it as a precious challenge, but first, have a respite with Nature;

When your prayers are getting fewer, so with the answers you expected, or prayers you cry out in times of distress; when hopelessness dims your faith not only towards your Creator but your fellowmen - have a respite with Nature;

When warned of the consequences of environmental degradation, like global warming and pollution, you look up to global policies and programs, then ask what an individual like yourself can do - have a respite with Nature;

When you don't see fireflies anymore, when neon lights subdue the stars, sunset comes early and fades away unnoticed; when you don't hear birds that accompany spring, see kites in the summer sky - have a respite with Nature;

When you can hardly differentiate natural from cosmetic beauty, function from aesthetics, work from play, ethics from morals, rich from wealthy, humor from wit, important from urgent, it's time for a retreat with Nature;

When you can find love and care in the wilderness, unity in the diversity of creation, music and poetry by a living stream, science in a dewdrop, miracle in a blade of grass - rejoice and thank Nature;

When you aim to "catch the biggest fish" in your lifetime, you are blest and ageless like in Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea ; and having caught one but receiving no trophy, found the biggest fish of all - Peace of Mind with Nature.
"The earth has music for those who listen." - William Shakespeare

Details of Painting: Fishing as a pastime; a cottage in the forest.
A pair of parrots; and a pair of hornbills (kalaw)
"Nature doth thus kindly heal every wound". Henry David Thoreau

21. Barbed-Wire Figurine Speaks

"It speaks of loss of forests, valleys, grasslands,
in their prime in the hands of early humans."- avr

Dr Abe V Rotor

Figurine (14" tall) made of barbed wire and tree relics of World War II,
artwork by the author 2025

It speaks not of war among brothers as enemies,
but war between man and nature in our midst.

It speaks not of trophies and medals of victory,
but nature's defeat by man's greed and folly.

It speaks not of an arch commemorating honor,
but a crumbling one, of a long forgotten valor.

It speaks of loss of forests, valleys, grasslands,
in their prime in the hands of early humans.

It speaks not of rivers flowing onto the field;
but of yield not enough to meet people's need.

It speaks of Nature as silent as Carson's spring,
at a season the birds would arrive and sing.

It speaks of high-tech, not in simple language,
a program people can understand and gauge.

22. Pearly Shell Savings Bank
On display at the Living with Nature Center
San Vicente, Ilocos Sur

Dr Abe V Rotor

“The habit of saving is itself an education; it fosters every virtue, teaches self-denial, cultivates the sense of order, trains to forethought, and so broadens the mind.” – T.T. Munger

Version of the "piggy bank" (9" height x 9"diameter) made of Green Mussels (tahong) shells, glass marbles. corals and stones, mounted on whole coconut shell. This indigenous piece of art is an expression of evolving art in our postmodern era. It is a unique school and community project, home decor of recycled materials, and more importantly, it brings to mind the importance of frugality, austerity and "saving for the rainy day" addressed to both the old and young.

Tradition in the midst of postmodernism;
like earning and saving once inseparable,
now lost in the tender trap of capitalism;
happiness and wealth are incompatible.

Save the values of old before it's too late;
The Ant and the Grasshopper, remember?
Give a touch of art, like resin into amber,
help mold the young for heaven's sake.

Assignment: Why don't you design and make your own version of a "piggy bank"? Be creative and original. Make one as a gift to a family member, a friend, or simply a child, and "spread the good word"?

“Saving must become a priority, not just a thought. Pay yourself first.” – Dave Ramsey
“He who buys what he does not need steals from himself.” – Swedish Proverb

23. "Capture Ephemeral Nature in Paintings"

"Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better." —Albert Einstein

Dr Abe V Rotor

Remnants of termites mounted on apocalyptic background painted

in acrylic by the author. On display at Living with Nature Center,

San Vicente, Ilocos Sur

High rise in ruins cower

to time, pest and weather,

their grandeur gone forever.

Will man ever remember?

Cave entrance reminiscent of Tabon Cave in Palawan,

relief painting in acrylic by AV Rotor.

Stalactite on the guard,

stained by a fiery past;

home of man long before

he became an outcast.

Profile of a human face on our Milky Way galaxy,
acrylic painting by AV Rotor.

Images of human abound,

in living colors and sound;

serendipity or providence,

captured as evidence.

Treetop convergence in acrylic by AV Rotor

Living with Nature Center

Trees make a community of their own,

they talk, sing, embrace one another;

designed by nature after they're sown,

living in unity together.

Microalgal colony in a pond in acrylic by AV Rotor

Living with Nature Center

It's a world of the minutiae,

thru the microscope we see,

but a shade of its entirety,

much less its diversity.

Tree skeleton clinging on a rock cliff, by AV Rotor

Living with Nature Center

It's counterpart of the sacred Cross;

let's save Mother Nature at all cost.

The Last Deer, wood carving against a dying waterfall

mural by AV Rotor, Living with Nature Center

"Two symbols on the wall,

neither the fairest of all."

Edge of land and sea, detail of a wall mural by AV Rotor.

Living with Nature Center, San Vicente, Ilocos Sur

"It's a reflection of a scenery,

opposite of a sweet memory." ~

Reference

Philippine Literature Today
Copyright 2015 by C & E Publishing, Inc 237 pp
Abercio V Rotor and Kristine Molina-Doria

24. Before the World Goes Silent

By Santiago*

"This is our finest hour, and we are God-sent,

To act now before the world goes silent." - Santiago

The young artist poses with his painting depicting the

theme, Before the World Goes Silent, 2025

Times were beautiful once, if I’m not mistaken,
But due to our folly, abuse has taken.
The forests were green as the tides were blue,
But all soon faded, as the sky lost its hue.

Aren’t we to be blamed for this great damage?

If not, do we have to fix such carnage?
The old has its past, yet aims to bear new fruit,
Even a broken arrow seeks the truth.

We stand tall and high like we can control all -

But can we survive a storm’s sprawl?
Won’t devastation strike and consume us all,
Especially if death starts to call?

Who lurk in the shadows may miss the climes,
But would they ever speak in these times?
If only on paper that our thoughts are enough,
And not twist the mind with hate and bluff.

We will be struggling still, if we don’t recall
The beast whose head hangs on the wall,
As the poor can’t walk, so they start to crawl;
Mighty empires will tumble and fall.

Grim and violent is our world, we can’t deny it,
But we need to live decently with and for it;
This is our finest hour, and we are God-sent,
To act now before the world goes silent. ~

* Mateo Lawrence M Rotor, 13; St Paul College of Ilocos Sur

25. My Experimental Artworks

Dr Abe V Rotor

Living With Nature Center

San Vicente, Ilocos Sur

"Paintings are but research and experiment. I never do a painting as a work of art. All of them are researches. I search constantly and there is a logical sequence in all this research." - Pablo Picasso

School children come to me for art's sake.
"Lolo, what projects can we make?"
It's the idea that stirs their imagination
into many ways of art expression. - avr

Art with Shells

Shells collection into work of art against a marine scene mural.

Arrange and mount on a base,
now a table decor, a receptacle
of things you love and praise;
truly it's an art-to-craft version,
for aesthetics and function. - avr

Marine specimens into artwork

Paint a sea floor background as base.
Spread out shells and corals freely.
Let your guests touch them and study,
with guidance, and care just in case. - avr

Relief Paintings

Birds in the trees

It's painting and sculpture combined,
with three-dimensional effect;
let thick paint harden on wood palette;
it's a unique school project. - avr

Pangea, the proto-continent

Like jigsaw puzzle land masses do fit,
through continental drift, scientists say;
Pangea, once the proto-continent split
into seven continents we know today. - avr

Imprint Painting on Ceramic

"E tu Brute?"

Assassination of Julius Caesar on the "Ides of March".

Art digs into history, stirs imagination;
the dying Caesar begging his friend;
a final stab, scene in symbolic action,
brings the story to a sad end. - avr

Fungus Painting

Fungal mycelia* etching appears like integral part of a wall mural.

Wonder, what is unwanted and destructive,

in art may be beautiful and attractive. - avr

* Main body of a fungus, consisting of a network of thread-like filaments called hyphae.

26. The World in his Paint Brush
Dr Abe V Rotor

Markus 2 author's grandson paints a mural 2015, QC

"Freedom in imagination, young as he is, while grownups yearn for expression outside the confines of art; who is the master then? Yet, the path that he takes is rough and uncertain, sans model and determination he'll miss his aim." - A V Rotor

"Nothing, indeed, is more dangerous to the young artist than any conception of ideal beauty: he is constantly led by it either into weak prettiness or lifeless abstraction: whereas to touch the ideal at all, you must not strip it of vitality." - Oscar Wilde

"It is only after years of preparation that the young artist should touch color - not color used descriptively, that is, but as a means of personal expression." - Henri Matisse

27. Tumbleweed in the Sky
Artwork by Dr Abe V Rotor

Tumbleweed and wooden shards, AV Rotor 2025

Orphaned from the hills and field,
the woods once your home gone;
except your seeds with spiny shield
to grow and carry on in the sun.

Closeup of a local tumbleweed

I found you on a wasteland tumbling,
alone with the wind whistling;
come with me to my garden and art,
and here we shall never part.

*A tumbleweed is the dead, dried, above-ground part of a plant that detaches from its roots and rolls in the wind, dispersing seeds. This rolling plant is a diaspore, a mechanism for seed dispersal that helps the plant colonize new areas. Halaman na gumugulong sa hangin," literally means "plant that rolls in the wind"
AUTHOR'S NOTE: A good subject of research, undergraduate and graduate, on the botany of this grass, Family Poaceae, growing on marginal lands and shorelines, its ecological potential in wasteland reclamation.

28. Blue Butterflies Live on in Art and Culture*

“Butterflies are nature’s angels. They remind us what a gift

it is to be alive.” — Robyn Nola

Dr Abe V Rotor

A pair of Menelaus** blue morpho butterflies (Morpho meneleus) Family

Nymphalidae. Painted by the author (tutor) and Hannah Laurente 15,

a coed from Ilocos Sur National High School, November 15, 2025

Lucky to find a blue butterfly around,

fluttering in the garden;

more so when re-created in painting;

it lives on unforgotten.

Hannah Laurente 15, poses with her artwork in acrylic on canvas. Background paintings by the author are: mounted Papilio swallowtail butterflies, and still life
relief floral painting, on display at the Living with Nature, San Vicente, Ilocos Sur.
-------------------------
* Their brilliant blue wings are stunning, the color is caused by a diffraction of the light from millions of tiny scales on its wings, which scares away predators. - South Coast Botanic Garden. The morpho butterflies comprise many species of Neotropical butterfly under the genus Morpho. This genus includes more than 29 accepted species and 147 accepted subspecies, found mostly in South America, Mexico, and Central America. Internet

** In Greek mythology, Menelaus was a Greek king of Mycenaean Sparta. According to the Iliad, the Trojan War began as a result of Menelaus's wife, Helen, fleeing to Troy with the Trojan prince Paris. Wikipedia

“I almost wish we were butterflies and liv'd but three summer days — three such days with you I could fill with more delight than fifty common years could ever contain.” ― John Keats

"Narcissus Blue Butterfly"

Photograph by the author c. 2016

at his home garden in San Vicente, Ilocos Sur

God-like Narcissus has long been dead,

yet his butterfly still visits the water;

mythology lives on in art and culture,

and in young hearts for that matter. - avr

The myth of Narcissus is about a strikingly handsome youth who rejects the love of all who pursue him, including the nymph Echo. He is cursed by the gods to fall in love with his own reflection in a pool of water, a love he can never fulfill, and he eventually wastes away from despair. In most versions, he dies and is transformed into the flower that bears his name, the narcissus (or daffodil). To the author, the blue butterfly (photo) is a living symbol of Narcissus.

“Don’t waste your time chasing butterflies. Mend your garden, and the butterflies will come.” — Mario Quintana

ANNEX

A blue butterfly crossing your path is often seen as a symbol of hope, joy, and transformation. It can be interpreted as a sign of good luck, a wish coming true, or an encouragement to embrace personal growth and new beginnings. Some also see it as a messenger, a sign of being on the right path, or a spiritual reminder of the life cycle and beauty of nature. Common meanings and interpretations.

o Hope and joy: The blue color is strongly associated with powerful emotions like joy, hope, and peace.

o Transformation: Like all butterflies, a blue one symbolizes a profound metamorphosis from caterpillar to butterfly, representing rebirth and positive change.

o Good luck and wishes: Seeing a blue butterfly is frequently seen as a good omen, and it's believed by some to bring good luck or help make wishes come true.

o Spiritual guidance: Butterflies are sometimes seen as spiritual messengers, which can be interpreted as a sign from angels or a reminder to stay present and appreciate life's beauty.

o Personal growth: It can be an invitation to expand your awareness, make positive changes in your life, and move forward with a greater sense of purpose.

A message for your path: The butterfly's journey across your path may signify that you are on the right track or being guided toward your true potential. AI Overview/Internet

“Butterflies can’t see their wings. They can’t see how truly beautiful they are, but everyone else can. People are like that as well.” — Naya Rivera

Forest on a Wall Mural:

29. Bring Nature into the City

"Nature is the art of god." — William Blake

Dr Abe V Rotor

A Tropical Rainforest Wall Mural (3.5 ft x 15 ft) in acrylic by Dr Abe V Rotor at his residence in Lagro, Block 61, Lot 55 (corner Kudyapi St and Lam-ang St) 2015. The mural is an integral part (3rd panel) of a larger mural (7 ft x 30 ft). The mural is made up of three sections as shown in the above photos: Emergent trees and their tenants (top);
Exploring a forest stream (middle), food web and energy flow (lowermost)

Among the countless creatures of the tropical rainforest that comprise its rich biodiversity are: a rat, giant among its kind in the lowland, lives in a hollow of a tree; boa constrictor adapted to arboreal life, transient gulls adapted to both sea and forest life; tree iguana that branched out of marine igunas, and those that live in dry conditions; chameleon the master of camouflage and mimicry; sloth, mother and young, clinging on a tree motionless and sleeping most of its life.

My grandson, Marchus Andrei, 6 months old and his nanny - guardians of this rainforest wall mural. ~

30. Capture and Enshrine Nature in Murals

Capture sweet memories of nature,

relive, enshrine;

capture time, brief as it may -

it's yours and mine.

Murals and Poem by Dr Abe V Rotor

Living with Nature Mural, San Vicente, Ilocos Sur

Wall mural at EA Apartelle, San Vicente, Ilocos SurI

NFA Farmers' Museum, Cabanatuan NE

Agoho Trees and Pond, SPUQC

Author poses with his work, Forest Stream, SPUQC

Capture nature in murals,

as big as screen;

capture creation from imagination

as it has been;

capture sunrise and sunset,

and the moonbeam;

capture the breeze passing over

a lovely stream;

capture the lilies in the pond rising

with the sunbeam;

capture the clouds becoming nimbus

before the rain;

capture the rivulets from the hills

writhing in pain;

capture the creatures talking,

sing and scream;

capture the essence of the gods

into a theme;

capture silence away from where

you have been;

capture the throb of the heart

away from sin;

capture the world in a grain of sand,

pure and crystalline;

capture nature through the arts,

classic and fine;

capture sweet memories of lost nature,

relive, enshrine;

capture time, brief as it may -

it's yours and mine. ~

Floor-to-wall-to-ceiling mural at author's residence

San Vicente, Ilocos Sur ~

Reference: Don’t Cut the Trees, Don’t

31. "Save Our Birds"

Dr Abe V Rotor

Naturalist and Art Instructor

Amihan is here but where are the birds?*- avr

Participants to a drawing workshop pose with their art works at the Living with Nature garden on November 2, 2025 (All Souls Day). At the background is an enshrined stone bust of national hero Dr Jose Rizal depicting his four years exile in Dapitan, a remote place in Mindanao. Besides being a doctor, author, linguist, teacher, Rizal was a lover of nature, a biologist who discovered new species of plants and animals. (Jessel Domingo, Jhun Ronald L Larca, Ana Rose Peleyre, Lydia Mae Peleyre)

They came, the four of them, after mass.
to say Hello, share the blessings of Undas;
at home, there are drawing materials ready,
and soon they they were very busy.

Let's draw some birds before they're gone,
through art people may understand;
real or symbolic, birds are always beautiful,
emanating from fine art and soul.

“Keep a green tree in your heart and perhaps a singing bird will come.”

- Chinese Proverb

Hornbill or Kalaw, Jay;

Lark, Philippine Eagle

"Never give up listening to the sound of birds.” John James Audubon

-------------------------

* In Rachel Carson's book, Silent Spring, she wrote that if humans continued to use pesticides without limitations, the chemicals would damage the environment. DDT weakened birds' eggshells. If the government didn't set laws to protect the environment, humans would soon experience a "silent spring," without bird noises.~

Beginners' workshop:

32. Let's paint a landscape

“Some painters transform the sun into a yellow spot,

others transform a yellow spot into the sun.” Pablo Picasso

Dr Abe V Rotor

Art workshop instructor

Waterfall in acrylic AV Rotor 2025

Yes, you can paint.

Use simple and local materials and tools.
Get from a hardware store brushes and latex paints.
Stretch canvas on homemade frame, or use plywood or cardboard.
You need only the 3 primary colors: yellow, blue, red.
With white you can make all colors, hues and shades you need.
Use water as medium - sprinkle or spray sparingly as needed.
Have a handy mixing board, and save it for succeeding sessions.
Blue and yellow makes green; yellow and red, orange; blue and red, brown.
Blue and white, sky blue; red and white, pink; yellow and white, lemon.
Secondary to tertiary colors: try green and white, brown and white, etc.
Black is made by mixing the 3 primary colors in equal amounts.
Work spontaneously and freely with these colors you produced.
Paint light colors first, dark colors follow, based on your subject.
Relax, rest when needed. Painting is a hobby, leisure, and not work.
View your work, now and then, near and far. Paint independently.

Cumulus cloud turns nimbus.

Be creative

On-the-spot painting is best at appropriate place and time.
Art is creativity where imagination prevails over conventional attention.
For example, clouds are everchanging. Explore and capture the best scenery.
Art is theory, your work is subjective. Art is freedom of expression.
But be keen of the basic elements of art like perspective and balance.

Rain falls on the watershed, in turn makes the waterfall alive.

Details

Details gradually give flesh and shape to your painting..
A landscape you have visited or seen leaves an imprint.
Blend this with the present scene on the spot.
Or recall it as impression, and try to reconstruct it.
Details may be vivid or basic. Only you can tell your painting is finished.

Waterfall - link of sky and stream, to sea

Impact and Message

Art arouses the senses: a waterfall roars, stream talks as it flows, rocks fall and tumble, breeze whispers, birds sing, etc.
Air is fresh, clouds are soft to the touch, water cool and pure.
All these make your painting alive. You are conveying a message to your viewers.
Make them read your mind, feel your feelings, share your philosophy of life. ~

Complete the scenery:

Birds in the sky, migrating, hovering, roosting
Signs of rain. Where does a rainbow fit?
Rays of light through the sky reach the ground.
Kids fishing, hiking, climbing. A family picnic.
Trees and wildlife, far and closeup views.

And more.

What is commonly called ugliness in nature can in art become full of beauty.” - Auguste Rodin

33. A Lovely Pair in a Bower*

"To you, I'll give the world." - Fleetwood Mac

Dr Abe V Rotor

A Lovely Pair in a Bower in acrylic (11.5" X 16") by the author

Author (left) presents painting and a book** he wrote as gifts to Fr Mars Tan, president of Xavier University, on the latter's visit to the author's home

in San Vicente, Ilocos Sur in 2024.

A Lovely Pair in a Bower

Let the world go by in their bower,
lovers blind to the busy world,
away from the maddening crowd;
fleeting moment is forever,
to this pair in their lair.

Wonder in our midst who we are,
blind to each other, but the world,
strange this crowd we are in;
where's this lovely pair,
where's their bower?

* A bower for fish is a nest built by fish

using their mouths to move sand or other

materials. Fish build bowers for spawning.

** Living with Nature in Our Home and Community

by AV Rotor, 2023

Fr. Mars P. Tan, S.J., University President since July 31, 2020, is a member of the Board. As one of six Jesuit colleges and universities in the Philippines, Xavier Ateneo also forms a consortium with the other two Jesuit universities in Mindanao, namely: Ateneo de Davao University and Ateneo de Zamboanga University. (Internet)

34. "Above me rises a dead tree."

Dr Abe V Rotor

"We make up horrors to help us cope with the real ones." - Stephen King

Lady devotee Angie Tobias turns her attention to Mother Nature in the

midst of today's massive destruction of the environment symbolized

by this driftwood artwork made by the author for Lent 2024.

When the sky is gray and red in sorrow,
the fields bare and dry all around,
the sun beats hard on ev'ry levee and furrow;
I wonder where I am and bound.

No shade to find comfort even for a while,
save a tree standing on a hill,
where some birds briefly rest and again fly,
leaving me empty at the scene.

I look up and wonder, "Is this Golgotha?"
No sound, no breeze, but eerie
like I were in the heart of the Sahara;
above me rises a dead tree. ~

Standing skeleton of mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla).

Lagro, QC, photo by the author, circa 1994

I have lost you forever,
Now a silhouette in the sky,
Spreading a gospel to remember,
For the mindless passerby.

You have lived half of your life,
Yet fullest at the Throne;
Earning it well with strife,
Where every seed is grown.

The birds now a flock,
The child a man;
You bid them all the luck,
And now they are gone.

In youth you sheltered me,
A thought I can't be free,
I atone for your brevity,
With a thousand and one tree.

- AV Rotor, Light in the Woods 1994

"The universe is full of magical things patiently waiting for your wits to grow sharper." - Eden Phillpotts

35. The Pond - the World in Microcosm

Dr Abe V Rotor

"Many drops make a bucket, many buckets make a pond, many ponds make a lake, and many lakes make an ocean." - Percy Ross

A. Forest Pond

Forest Pond, painting in acrylic by AV Rotor

It is not the Walden Pond of Thoreau;
it is not the mirror pond of Narcissus;
but a pond somewhere in the forest
in the mind, away from others' views.

A pond in silence and in song all day;
a pond that reflects the stars at night;
and in summer air shimmers the sun,
and from heaven a magnificent sight. ~

B. Wildlife Park

Chris Ann R Rotor

Wildlife Park, on-the spot painting by Chris Anna R Rotor 11,

author's daughter, Parks and Wildlife Center, Diliman, QC 1995.

Lake in monsoon, pond in summer,
Rest house and ark in the middle,
A ring of trees makes a forest cover,
For ducks and fishes a living cradle.

C. Silence of the Pond

Silence of the Pond, AV Rotor, Circa 1989

Here true silence lies,
not eerie, not deafening,
for silence is communion
of self and surrounding.

Here true silence lies:
leaves quiver in the breeze,
ripples gently rise and fade,
buzz the honey bees.

Here true silence lies,
in the rhythm of the sky,
the rainbow a huge harp,
music all that sing or cry.

Here true silence lies:
the sound of the pond,
not in its depth or breadth;
the trees by their bond.

Here true silence lies,
beyond the audible,
in magic waves in the air,
and the perceptible.

Here true silence lies,
giving in is acceptance,
the root of humility,
courage in any instance.

Here true silence lies,
the heart longs, singing,
thoughts not to reason
the confines of living.

Here true silence lies,
sweet memories an art
in the silence of a pond,
throbbing in the heart. ~

"If you throw the pebble in the pond and the rings start circulating that much wider, you've done things and created things for people that they didn't think they'd ever be able to do." - Mindy Grossman

* Microcosm is something seen as a small version of a much larger thing.

36. Twelve Paintings with the Color Red

Dr Abe V Rotor

"Red protects itself. No color is as territorial. It stakes a claim, is on the alert against the spectrum. Painters use red like spice,"- Derek Jarman, British artist and film maker

"Red, oh, the bleeding drops of red..."
Lord Alfred Tennyson's imprimatur;
"O my Luve is like a red, red rose..."
Robert Burns signature.

Tragic and romantic, red the color
of extremes - passionate love, seduction,
violence, danger, anger, adventure.
prize or loss in every action.

Our prehistoric ancestors saw red,
the color of fire and blood,
energy and primal life forces,
symbolism's good and bad.

Red Fish and Brood in acrylic AVRotor 2015

"When in doubt, wear red." - Bill Blass, A-Z Quotes.

El Niño Autumn in a Forest in acrylic AVRotor 2015

Sun and Red Ball of Fire in a Forest in acrylic, AVRotor 2015

"The red carpet can hide more than just blood stains.”

― Anthony T. Hincks

Fire Tree in Bloom, Mt Makiling, Laguna, on-the spot painting

by Anna Rotor, author's daughter, 1992

Uncommon fruit, by the late Sr Veny V Rotor ofs,
author's sister

Macopa, by Sr Veny V Rotor ofs

"Red is the first color of spring. It's the real color of rebirth. Of beginning."

- A-Z Quotes

Red Bird, Postmortem, a surreal painting, AVRotor

"Red is the color of life. It's blood, passion, rage. It's menstrual flow and after birth. Beginnings and violent end." - Goodreads

Global Warming, AVRotor, circa 1990

Red Sargassum, AVRotor

“Wear red and just be silent, don’t even whisper by yourself; you will see that you will be heard easily because red always speaks on behalf of you! By wearing red, you give your tongue and voice to red colour!”― Mehmet Murat ildan

Gamet, red seaweed by AVRotor

Red Cabbage, AVRotor

"Red is a strong, happy, optimistic color, and I like having fun with it, you know?"

- Rihanna, Gracious Quotes

Wildfire aftermath, AVRotor

"There is a shade of red for every woman." - Audrey Hepburn

Development Communication (DevCom)

37. Cry of the Lawin, Philippine Hawk

Lawin symbolizes the young generations. It brings in the morning sun, it connects us grownups with the young generation.

Dr Abe V Rotor
Inaugural speech of the author upon assuming the position as first president of LAWIN (Lagro writers and artists) Association Inc, June 20 2016 Barangay Greater Lagro QC

We, in Greater Lagro are blessed with having a rare bird called Philippine hawk or LAWIN in our language. It is a close relative of the Philippine eagle, which is considered a symbol of our culture.

Painting of a Philippine Lawin on a backboard by the author

On a clear day we may see the lawin* hovering over our subdivision, alone or with a partner in dalliance, simply gliding and circling up in the sky, in a spectacular kind of show that this bird now categorized as threatened is still around. Its home is the La Mesa watershed, just across our subdivision. It is in deference to this bird that our association has adopted it as our symbol and acronym - LAWIN.

We thank our gazette editor Mr Fil Galimba who brought the idea of the organization, and Atty Riz Quiaoit for adopting Lawin as our symbol.

But what really does the lawin symbolize?

One early morning my granddaughter pointed at the bird in the sky. I explained what I know about the bird.  Lawin symbolizes the young generations. It brings in the morning sun, it connects us grownups with the young generations. It gives our children a break from iPads and TV.

One time children in the neighborhood in our place could not play their favorite game basketball. Somebody rebuilt their backboard, and games resumed. There is one difference: the other player on the backboard is a big lawin with outstretched wings seemingly playing with the kids.

Nearby a garbage dump began to transform into a vegetable and herbal garden. The children called it Lawin Garden. It is a local version of the Phoenix bird rising from the garbage ashes.

The lawin has a peculiar cry while in flight - clear and loud whistle of two notes. But most often, it is a silent flyer with panoramic and telescopic vision.

It can see like a satellite monitor what is happening over its broad area of vision, yet able to focus on the slightest movement - a prey or an enemy.

Writers and artists to a great degree are like the lawin. Like the lawin, true writers and artists are a vanishing breed, they are an endangered species victim of instant and unguided social media, and worst assassination of journalists. The Philippines is compared to worn-torn countries like Gaza and Ukraine for having the highest number of killings in mass media.

The lawin writers and artists have "eyes for news and the arts," Their aerial perspective is holistic and contiguous. They see the multiplicity and unity of space and time, people and events. And they never veer away from their community which they watch over.

At the onset of organizing LAWIN, we did some research on our trust and functions, and on the long run - our projected goal.

Our reference is the our own Gazette. Lawin is DEVELOPMENT COMMUNICATION. DevCom recognizes the power of communication as a catalyst for social development. It utilizes the tools and principles applicable in the community they serve for the advancement of society.

In an outline DevCom is

Information dissemination and education
Social Marketing - ideas, knowledge and wisdom
Purposive communication - it sets targets
Social mobilization - involvement and militancy
Community improvement mainly on felt needs
Positive change (social, political, economic, moral, environmental, etc)
Participatory development - bottom-up approach
Humanities development - applied aesthetics
Sentinel and vanguard of code of media
Pathfinder - pioneering and visionary

Development Communication as the INTEGRATION OF STRATEGIC COMMUNICATION IN DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS, based on a clear understanding of real and down-to-earth situations, with people's participation and shared equitable benefits.

What then would be our guiding principle in our program? It can be summarized as follows, for an anonymous source:

"If it is of high quality, people will respect you;
If it is relevant, people ill need you;
If it is measurable, people will trust you;
If it is innovative, people will follow you."

If you were the lawin up in the sky over Greater Lagro, you are likely to see these -

the need to train students in our schools in the field of mass media and applied art to run their school paper.
the need to take care of the trees, and to plant more tree, to make Lagro an extension of the shrinking wildlife.
the need to expand outdoor activities, participate in wholesome games and sports, creative activities.
the need to guard Greater Lagro from the incursion of bad elements, vices, violations of human rights, peace and order.
bringing in honors and prestige to the community through the talents of its citizens, particularly the young.
unifying relationships of families, strengthening bonding, making the community senior citizen friendly, grandchildren friendly as well.

There are one-thousand-and-one other visions that challenge the organization LAWIN and its members giving meaning to their membership, above all leaving their legacy for the next generations.~

Neighborhood projects of LAWIN (Lagro Association of Writers and Artists, Inc)

Sports development: Lawin Backboard; Green Revolution: Lawin Garden

About the Philippine Hawk Lawin

by Naomi Millburn

Philippine hawk-eagles (Nisaetus philippensis) are raptors native only to the Philippines. "Lawin" translates to "hawk" in the Tagalog tongue. Philippine hawk-eagles survive in very low numbers, so their population is considered vulnerable.
Philippine hawk-eagles (Nisaetus philippensis) are raptors native only to the Philippines.

Physical Appearance

Philippine hawk lawins are typically about 26 or 27 inches long. The top portions of their plumage are deep brown, and their lower portions are reddish-brown and adorned in black markings. Philippine hawk-eagles have pale throats, yellow limbs, deep gray beaks and dark crests. Their crests are made up of four to five feathers, some of which can reach 2.75 inches long. It takes about four years to develop their mature feathers. Fully grown Philippine hawk-eagles tend to have lithe physiques.

Living Environment

Philippine hawk lawins inhabit numerous islands throughout the Philippines, including Mindoro and Luzon. They haven't been confirmed as migratory, though they might occasionally travel between islands. They are prevalent around outer portions of forests, sometimes even in airy settings. Philippine hawk-eagles spend a lot of time hidden in the top layers of forests. They do a lot of high flying within their habitats.

Population

The number of Philippine hawk lawins in the wild is dropping swiftly. Their total population is thought to be 1,000 and 2,499 specimens, two-thirds of which are adults, according to Bird Life International. Key factors in their decline are the clearing of trees for logging, farm animals, and farming expansion in general. People also sometimes hunt Philippine hawk-eagles. Efforts to conserve this species include captive reproductive programs and protected locations such as Bataan National Park.

Vocalization

The signature call of the Philippine hawk lawin is a clear, loud whistle of two notes. These birds call out over and over again, sometimes in intervals of three seconds.~

Greater Lagro and adjoining Fairview, hug the Northeastern limits La Mesa Dam a 700-hectare water reservoir that supplies water to Metro Manila and suburbs.

38. Life is like a waterfall

“Just let go – and fall like a little waterfall.” — Bob Ross

Dr Abe V Rotor

A. Life is a Waterfall

The Waterfall - A Story of Life in acrylic (24" x 33.5"), AV Rotor 2025

tell me not in mournful numbers that life is but a dream

In my golden years, I look back to the east.
Lo! the trees and grass are verdant green,
cumulus clouds rise, twin waterfalls hiss,
meet a stream. it's a most beautiful scene!

B. Waterfall in the Sky

Waterfall in the Sky in acrylic AVRotor 2025

Hydrologic cycle, but what is it
in simple words, in drawing or painting?
"Please show us," chorused the children -
indeed it's a great challenge in teaching.

From below, and up into the blue sky,
water rises into cloud, cloud into rain,
into waterfall, falling down to earth,
onto fields and rivers like living train.

Indeed imagery is more powerful
than vocabulary, or the eye could see;
deep in the heart and mind of the young,
a waterfall lives before reaching the sea. ~

C. Waterfalls of my Childhood

Waterfalls, painted from childhood memory

(Napo, Sto. Domingo, Ilocos Sur) AVR

Roar in monsoon, whisper in summer,

catch the rain upstream,

leap over the ledge, glow and shimmer,

die as you lose your steam,

yet you live in sweet memory forever.

"Where there's a waterfall, there's a way to adventure!" Journey Era

D. Confluence of Nature in Mural

Confluence of Nature mural in acrylic on canvas, 9ft x 8 ft

Confluence of nature, unity in diversity,
where sky meets land, river flows to sea,
where time and space, matter and energy
are in union and joyful harmony,
omnipotence of no other but Thee.

E. Waterfall of our Dreams

A make-believe re-enactment of sweet memories by a waterfall

at author's residence, San Vicente, Ilocos Sur.

That was many, many years ago by a waterfall,
hundreds and hundreds of miles away from home,
when time was patient, adventure waiting beyond,
deafening roar settling down in cloud and foam.

Quiet and calm the fall but it was just beginning
her trek down the river onto the wide, wide sea;
how we followed her in dreams and lofty thoughts,
taking us far and wide that no eye could see.

Career and family, travel and company we sought,
like the waterfall roaring in search for the sea,
dying all along her way on fields and meadows,
giving life to every nook and the community.

That was many years ago by this fall of our dream,
away from the maddening crowd and Midas' lure;
homing takes us back to where it was once before,
her replica on a wall gleaming full and pure. ~

F. Old Waterfall

Dry Waterfall in acrylic by the author (c.1986)

Drip, drip, drip, like tears,
too far out to meet the sea,
in dirge of a dying waterfall
once proud and full and free.

Drip, drip, drip, like rain,
too little to quench the land,
to make the fields green and alive,
and dewdrops to greet the sun.

Drip, drip, drip, the pipes run dry,
no longer music in the park;
behind white walls and rooftops,
and some forgotten arch. ~

“I can see my rainbow calling me through the misty breeze of my waterfall." - Unknown

G. I am a waterfall - a drawing exercise

Waterfall mural, AVR 2009

How do you see yourself as a waterfall?

This exercise leads us to differentiate reality from imagination. Second, how can we combine reality and idealism to express ourselves?

Here is a drawing exercise suitable to both young and old, class or workshop.

As a participant draw a waterfall from your own experience and imagination. You have ten minutes to finish it on a one-fourth bond paper using pencil or pen.

A background music is provided while you work. Nature’s sound: water cascading or flowing accompanied by songs of birds and other creatures, and occasional breeze. The theme of a song is Somewhere Over a Rainbow. Other appropriate pieces are The Blue Danube and Flow Gently Sweet Afton.

If you are ready to start the exercise, at this juncture, please pause.

You will come to know the basis of judging your work after you are through. It takes some twenty minutes to finish.

--------------------------------
NOTE: Do not read these criteria until you have completed your drawing.

Exchange your paper with your seatmate's. The instructor will now guide you in checking the papers with the criteria below. Use a scale of 1 to 10, starting with 1=Very Poor to 5=Average, and to 10=Outstanding. It's now your discretion to grade the paper given you.

Height of the waterfall
Fullness of its water
Lushness of its watershed
Abundance of its source, river or lake
Force and power of the fall
Strength and firmness of the rock face
Downstream flow and direction
Creatures in their natural habitat
No wasteland, no space left out
Naturalness and artistic presentation

Add the points obtained from each of the 10 factors. The perfect score is 100. Return paper to the owner.

The second part of the exercise is sharing. What is the significance of this exercise? How does it relate to life?

Relate each criterion with your personal life, your dealings with people, Nature, and the Creator. This takes about half an hour or so.

This exercise leads you to know yourself better - your strength and weakness - and most important - your potentials. ~

39. Autumn in Paintings, Verses and Songs

Dr Abe V Rotor

A Walk in the Woods in Autumn acrylic by AVR

The Woods in Autumn acrylic by AVR

Autumn Moods

Meditate at sunrise

In kaleidoscope of colors

Weaving through the mist,

With whispers of devotion.

Take a book and flip the pages,

Slowly with intent feelings,

As the early breeze brushes

Your forehead and brawn.

Or walk down the lane

Trodden only by the unseen;

Before the season is over,

Let each one praise Nature.

Autumn Leaves in acrylic by AVR

Autumn Leaves 1

The falling leaves

Drift by my window

The falling leaves

Of red and gold

I see your lips

The summer kisses

The sunburned hands

I used to hold

Since you went away

The days grow long

And soon I'll hear

Old winter's song

But I miss you most of all

My darling

When autumn leaves

Start to fall

Since you went away

The days grow long

And soon I'll hear

Old winter's song

But I miss you most of all

My darling

When autumn leaves

Start to fall.

Autumn Leaves 2

The falling leaves drift by the window

The autumn leaves of red and gold

I see your lips, the summer kisses

The sun-burned hands I used to hold

Since you went away the days grow long

And soon I'll hear old winter's song

But I miss you most of all my darling

When autumn leaves start to fall

C'est une chanson, qui nous ressemble

Toi tu m'aimais et je t'aimais

Nous vivions tous, les deux ensemble

Toi que m'aimais moi qui t'aimais

Mais la vie sépare ceux qui s'aiment

Tout doucement sans faire de bruit

Et la mer efface sur le sable les pas des amants désunis

"Autumn Leaves" is a much-recorded popular song. Originally it was a 1945 French song "Les feuilles mortes" (literally "The Dead Leaves") with music by Hungarian-French composer Joseph Kosma and lyrics by poet Jacques Prevert the Hungarian title is "Hulló levelek" (Falling Leaves). Yves Montand (with Irene Joachim) introduced "Les feuilles mortes" in 1946 in the film Les Portes de la Nuit. The American songwriter Johnny Mercer wrote English lyrics in 1947 and Jo Stafford was among the first to perform this version. "Autumn Leaves" became a pop standard and a jazz standard in both languages, both as an instrumental and with a singer. Popularized by world famous singers like Frank Sinatra, and Nat King Cole.

40. I am a Student of Evolving Art

"I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand." - Confucius

Dr Abe V Rotor

It's advanced impressionism,

a little of Van Gogh and Picasso.

But who am I to found a school?

Art as a theory is all I know.

"I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn't say any other way - things I had no words for." - Georgia O'Keeffe

Relief painting with a palette knife,

to capture a hatching egg;

take the backseat brush, the time is ripe

for freedom in art, I beg.

“Freedom is the soul of art.” “Even science is art, when it flows pure and free - literature is art, when it flows pure and free - mathematics is art, when it flows pure and free. Any act of the mind that flows pure and free, is art, for freedom is the soul of art.”― Abhijit Naskar, Lives to Serve Before I Sleep

Glass painting in three-dimensions,

I gave one side a transparent aura;

on the main pane, the subject matter;

seen combined, it's a diorama.

"The arts are not a frill. The arts are a response to our individuality and our nature, and help to shape our identity. What is there that can transcend deep difference and stubborn divisions? The arts. They have a wonderful universality. Art has the potential to unify. It can speak in many languages without a translator. The arts do not discriminate. The arts lift us up." - Barbara Jordan

Red for lack of other essential colors -

unconventional I was, yet an amateur,

imagining some culinary flavors,

art is both experience and adventure.

"Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere." - Albert Einstein

No plan, no perspective, wheretofore

goes my art? I wonder.

Yet I kept on and on, to explore

art in some hidden corner.

"One can compare art education to the solid foundation for a house - once it's built properly, it will hold any shape or form you will place on it." - Igor Babailov

Impressions of wild flowers with wet paint

leave footprints that shall not depart;

I say, Eureka, I found it, I found it!

A li'l Archimedes I am, in art.

Sperms seen under the lens,

searching an egg by chance;

in union a new life arises,

passes this way, but once.

"It's called the incubation period. The incubation period - one of the four phases of creativity - is when you're not consciously thinking of a problem, and you're letting it marinate. So this is why you hear time and again, people saying they had that "Eureka" moment in the bath, like Archimedes, or in the shower, or while going for a walk or in a coffeehouse."— Eric Weiner

Acknowledgement: Internet Quotes ~

Part 3

National Art Month February 2026 Part III:

Ecological Art Evolution in Our Times.

"Ecological art evolution means, respect for the environment, and respect for what was naturally occurring in nature."

1. Wildlife Park

Chris Ann R Rotor

Wildlife Park, on-the spot painting (8"x11") by Chris Anna R Rotor 11,

at the Parks and Wildlife Center, Diliman, QC 1995.

Lake in monsoon, pond in summer,
Rest house and ark in the middle,
A ring of trees makes a forest cover,
For ducks and fishes a living cradle.

Green House

Dr Abe V Rotor

"Art is the only way to run away without leaving home"

- Twyla Tharp

Green House Mural by AVRotor

Living with Nature Center, San Vicente, Ilocos Sur

Would you like to live in this green house,

lined with trees, bathed by the sun;

an abode away from the restless throng,

where man and nature are one?

MEDITATION

Reflection and Relaxation

"When the sun is in its zenith, half the day is gone, half of the work done, half of life's stirrings over, yet the joy of living, its challenges and rewards are whole and forever." avr

Dr Abe V Rotor

A Paulinian student takes time to meditate over a landscape mural painted by the author for St Paul College of Ilocos Sur, February 26, 2018.

When things seem to be overwhelming, the road long and rough, the horizon far and dim, and you feel powerless under this situation, give yourself time to meditate;

When the wind stops to blow, the treetops still, birds no longer fly, the fields lay bare after harvest time, summer creeps in, and you feel the false calm of doldrums, meditate;

When the first rain is but a shower, shy and naïve over the parched landscape and the dry riverbed, listen to the distant thunder, watch the gathering cloud, meditate;

When the mountains are blue in the distance, as blue as the azure sky and the sea resting after tempest, the valley deep and green, be part of the scenery, meditate;

When the birds migrate to the south before winter sets in and return in springtime, imagine the magnificence of the view from above, the adventure of travel, meditate;

When the trees proudly stand together to form a living fort, bastion against the vagaries of nature, abode and domicile of creation to which you are a part, meditate;

When the habagat is in its peak with days and days of rain, the fields now a huge lake, joining the rivers and the sea, it's nature's process of dynamic balance, meditate;

When the amihan sets in, cold wind from the north sweeps over the ripening grains, golden in the sun, undulating, lilting with kids flying kites - you're with them, meditate;

When the world seems to be moving too fast, on a chartless path, you feel you are adrift and part of a bandwagon, move out before it's too late, meditate;

When the trees come alive with music at dawn, mists settle into dewdrops, sparkling like diamonds as the sun rises, the curtain opens a new day - awake, meditate;

When the sun is in its zenith, half the day is gone, half of the work done, half of life's stirrings over, yet the joy of living, its challenges and rewards are whole, meditate;

When the sun sets, dusk the prelude to rest, Angelus prayer itself in silence, peace and harmony set in, be at the center of Home, Family and Creator, meditate. ~

--------------

Poetry reading is an art. In fact, poetry is intended to be read before an audience to fully appreciate it, its theme and message, its rhyme and rhythm, style and meter cum expression of the reader. For this particular piece, the author suggests as a background music, Meditation, a symphonic intermezzo from the opera Thaïs by French composer Jules Massenet. The piece is written for solo violin and orchestra. The opera premiered at the Opéra Garnier in Paris on March 16, 1894.

Valley of Life

Dr Abe V Rotor

Watershed, a wall mural by the author, St Paul University, QC

If a child asks, “What is a valley?”
Forget what you may have read -
valley of death, valley of sorrow;
valley is the life of the mountain,
more so, that of the river below.
It is a watershed, it is a trough,
where clouds gather and fall as rain,
where trees and beautiful flowers grow,
and life in its glory and diversity,
where Heaven and Earth glow. avr

Art Evolution

Experimental Glass Paintings

"Let me with my art freely live and die." - avr

Dr Abe V Rotor

Oh art! Take me to another place unfamiliar
like Gauguin's niche in the Pacific;
where the forests and rivers and seas can talk,
where I can clearly hear God speak.

Oh art! If to learn another style, another technique,
Gladly I take the road less trodden by;
Though dim and thorns and rocks may bar my way,
Let me with my art freely live and die. ~

Specimen 1 - Fan-type, typical of leaf venation, fungal mycelia and patterns of antibiosis in a culture medium.

When two immiscible media - oil and water-based acrylic - are mixed and sandwiched by two glass panes, the two opposing media create unexpected impressions of varied colors, shapes, hues and shades trapped in a network of venation. This method is extremely difficult in exactly executing a planned design or subject.

Surprisingly however, with constant practice and experimentation you can create amazing serendipitous designs and images such as these specimens. The biologist in me seemed to have dominated my new art, spontaneously expressing my thoughts about the subject, including the interpretation of each painting.

Specimen 2 - Colony-type, typical of swarms of plankton organisms,

germinating spores, and decomposition of tissues.

Specimen 3 - Dichotomous-type, typical of branching of

plants, seaweeds, growing buds, and growth habit of

protists and invertebrate organisms.

Specimen 4 - Bilateral symmetry, typical of dividing cells,

growth pattern of seaweeds, mosses and ferns.

Specimen 5 - Multiple dichotomy, typical of cancerous

growth, patterns of decomposition by bacteria and fungi.

This experimental painting technique and the results that it has created and continue to create, support the argument of a professor in Fine Arts at the University of the Philippines who said, "Everyone is entitled to his theory of the arts. No theory is wrong." ~

Global Warming is Creating a New Art Movement

"We are the first generation to feel the effect of climate change and the last generation who can do something about it". - US President Barack Obama

Paintings by Dr Abe V Rotor

Onslaught of the Glowing Armyworms
Armyworms are so-called because of their gregarious, voracious and they suddenly appear and attack. When food is scarce and environmental conditions unfavorable, they become wild and uncontrollable. Such is the tendency of a bandwagon, building up into a mob.

They come in an army strong in spring,
rising from quiescence with the first rain,
greed and abandon the rule of their game
spoiling all rules, free-for-all, and insane.

But only when cornered the biological
instinct reigns, survival the ultimate aim,
where nature lost its order, its pristine,
by man craving for wealth, power, fame.

How similar a pattern, could it be the genes
dictating? Creatures behaving like beast,
and man in neither in need nor in plenty,
fights in army whether in war or peace. ~

Degeneration of the Roses

Global warming has caused many problems in plants and animals. Hybrids are among the first to succumb, while the native species or varieties are the last. Their survival secret? Natural resistance built through countless generations in the open. As a rule. hybrids can't be left alone - they will revert to man-directed lines which are unstable and uncertain. The failure of science is when its progeny is abandoned or misguided.

"My luv is a red, red rose," in romanticism gone,
"Paper roses," a song of love lost and lament;
and Gertrude Stein, wanting of the right word,
said, "A rose is a rose is a rose," is truly meant.

The rose is very sick, not only in social norms,
it is sick with the loss of its indigenous genes,
it is sick with the pollution of its genetic pool,
manipulated to suit the market by all means.

While the whole world grows hotter each day;
Carbon in air traps heat; it too, turns into acid
falling as toxic rain, dousing the red in the rose.
Where have all the roses gone, their lovely bid? ~

Living Prism in the Deep

Painting and Poem by Dr Abe V Rotor

Living Prism in the Deep in acrylic (24” x 43”) 2017

Sunlight splits into colors, the rainbow,

through droplets hanging in the sky,

the deep among seaweeds where fish play,

letting time and the world go by.

Oh, how the seasons come and go at ease,

ephemeral in our lifetime,

yet fullest in awe and wonder and joy,

in the living prism in our prime.

In the golden years as the sun sets down,

and into the deep its last rays soon die,
lingers, flickers the light saved by the day

into beautiful dreams to live by. ~

Cryptobiology in Art

It's beyond this world to comprehend,

where superstition and science meet,

and debate continues without end.

1 - Cryptobiology* in Driftwood Art

Birds - Descendants of the Archaeopteryx.

Dr Abe V Rotor

Philippine eagle (Pithecophaga jefferyi), nature's art in driftwood -

a lucky find among uprooted and burned madre de caacao trees,

waste of swidden or kaingin farming in woodlands.

Into the sky this giant among Aves,

rises with all its strength sublime,

enthroned in wood gone to waste.

Look, it's our own eagle in its prime!

In the likeness of an eagle or hawk, I mounted these pieces

of driftwood against a background depicting its natural habitat.

Darwinian evolution, Part 2, or is it?

It's beyond this world to comprehend,

where superstition and science meet,

and debate continues without end.

It resembles the Philippine hawk or lawin flying majestically in the sky. I found this rare piece of wood cum bark of an old talisay (Terminalia catappa) uprooted by a typhoon on our homelot in San Vicente, Ilocos Sur, circa 2012

A legendary bird for children,

singular pride of our nation;

but we'll be losing this long time friend,

now at the brink of extinction.

Archeopteryx reconstructed from fossil

2 - Cryptids in our Midst

Dr Abe V Rotor

Top photos: Half-serpent, half-avian with distinct eyes, beak and crown (palong Tag); yelping puppy in a greeting pose. Lower photos: Long legged reptile emerging from a broken jar seems to be telling story fit for a horror movie.

This figure of an aquatic creature apparently swimming, was discovered in an estuary. Old folks claim the creature once lived where sea and river meet, a unique habitat of many strange creatures, animals and plants as well. Mural background adds to the queer ambiance of the figure.

Horned duck with wings half-spread ready for takeoff, gives a fantasy image of a strange creature, which kids relate with cartoon characters and unique specimens like the Pterodactyl, an extinct genus of pterosaurs.

Augury is the practice from ancient Roman religion of interpreting omens from the observed behavior of birds. A white dove means “peace”. A black dove means “war”. It could also pertain to matters of the heart, relationships, luck, misfortune, death, Remember the emissary bird in the biblical Noah's Ark? Have you seen a black dove in our real world?

*Cryptobiology is the study of cryptids, creatures around which myths exist but whose current existence has never been verified. Some famous cryptids include bigfoot, the Loch Ness monster, and the chupacabra. Cryptids are elusive creatures that dance on the fringes of human perception, whose existence has not been proven by science, but has been reported by many eye-witnesses. Modern science has proved the existence to creatures that existed only in imagination and fantasy.

"For everything there is a season,

and a time for every matter under heaven."

"There is a time to listen to God through His creation."

an acrylic painting by Dr Abe V Rotor

“For everything there is a season,
and a time for every matter under heaven:
a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
a time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to throw away;
a time to tear, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
a time to love, and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace.”

This sacred list from Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 represents all the seasons and the important changes of our lives. Some are happy times, others sad; some are productive while others seem wasteful; some inspire peace and others bring pain. (Internet)

Vortex - Eye of a Storm

Dr Abe V Rotor

Vortex - Eye of a Storm in acrylic, AV Rotor

Beware of the beautiful with fangs of fire;

like the eye of a storm and a woman's ire ~

THE FISH - Favorite Art Subject

Dr Abe V Rotor

1. Do Fish Ever Sleep?
2. Fish of the same fins get together
3. Sargassum Fish - Model of Mimicry and Camouflage
4. The Power of Imagination in Painting the Deep
5. The Eye in the Coral Reef
6. Nesting Fish
7. Mutation Gone Wild Through Genetic Engineering

1. Do Fish Ever Sleep?

Fish, pastel drawing by Angelica Mijares, then 9 years old
Summer Art Workshop for Children, SPUQC, circa 2001

Once I wondered if ever fish sleep,
Unless by sleep they remain still
In some quiet pool, like the cows and sheep,
After their fill lie on a grassy hill.

Could either, I ask, bring about man’s ease
And cease his mind to wonder and wander?
And where is that pool or that hill at peace,
Save Flanders, or some place ever after?

2. Fish of the same fins get together

Fish of the same fins get together, AVR

Fish, in their wide, wide world

danger lurks, more so in the dark.

Scarcely can they afford

to be alone. Beware of the shark!

3. Sargassum Fish

Model of Mimicry and Camouflage

Sargassum Fish in acrylic by the author, circa 2002

Strange this living world, if you wish;

fish to Sargassum, Sargassum to fish;

if evolution is by fusion

toward unification and peace,

where lies fission,

key to diversification?

There would be more fossils

than the present living,

extinguished before their time,

unfit by Darwinian rule -

unless the past had little left

the proof of the whole.

And here before our eyes: the link

of time past and present,

of fossil and the living,

changing, too nil, too slow;

wondering at Nature's game,

in her own sweet time.~

4. The Power of Imagination in Painting the Deep

Bottom of the Sea scene by the author (C 2000)

Imagination is more powerful than reason:
you can't go down and paint the scene;
so I took my brush and closed my eyes,
there in my mind grew a large screen.

Imagination builds our world and space,
the unseen, or just a passing of time,
take the fish in schools or in migration,
these are all beyond the mind.

In the deep, pitch black, and endless,
I brought in the sun and formed a vision
of life I knew so little with those real;
indeed, the power of imagination! ~

Convergence of fishes by the author (c.1995)

Ocean Cave, mural detail by the author (c. 2005)

Guardian Fish AVR 2000

Fish nursery painted on jar (burnay). ~

Algal Conglomerate (Volvox sp) c.2010

5. The Eye in the Coral Reef
The Eye in the Coral Reef, Acrylic Painting by the author 2015

The eye! The eye!
among the corals watching.
conscience of the sea,
over Homo sapiens fishing.

It never winks, it's alive,
guarding against man's folly,
whose eye, not of man,
disgraced guardian of the sea. ~

6. Nesting Fish
"Make your nest truly a beautiful home,
never ask why the task, and for whom." AVR

Nesting Tilapia in acrylic by AVR 2011

Make a nest for your bride, make it true,
An altar to knot your vows;
Make a nursery and a sanctuary, too
Safe from fangs and jaws.

Abode for the homeless and those in grief,
A stopover for the weary guest,
A fort ensconced among rocks and reefs
To hold and withstand any test.

Build a nest, but not of the proud bower bird,
Lavish but only in courtship;
Don't be like the marauding salmon in herd,
Returning only after a long trip.

Make your nest truly a beautiful home,
And none in your brood shall ever want;
Never shall you ask why the task, and for whom;
In life's drama, this is your part. ~

7. Mutation Gone Wild Through Genetic Engineering*

Crustacean mutants
Turkey fish Siamese twin
Deformed Groupers
   Evolution through fusion: Sargassum fish

Who is your father, who is your mother?
your sister, your brother?
You look like no one;
where did you come from?

Who is your guardian, who is your maker?
your ancestor, your kin?
You look like alien;
where did you come from?

Who is your friend, who is your neighbor?
your mate, your children?
You are an outcast;
where did you come from?

Why do you have blood other than your own?
Tissue and cells enlarged?
chromosomes paired, unpaired
DNA snipped, spliced?

Why do you have to be a giant among the small?
Or Lilliputian to be smart?
shaped like barrel or grass,
armed with less or more?

Why do you have to eat more than you should?
ravage all - big and small
to grow too large heeding not
the fate of the dinosaur?

Why do you have to veer away from your origin?
evade the dictates of nature?
live like vagabond
sans company, sans home?
What good is science destined to nowhere?
thriving on trial and error?
and having no control
of good and evil?

What good is science sans conscience clear?
though genius its master
at the border of insanity
for fame and glory?

What good is science that creates a Frankenstein
monster deprived of love,
home and family,
rebel against humanity?

What good is science that destroys what it builds?
like mad destroying the Pieta
for not seeing true beauty
in simplicity and piety? ~

* Spontaneous thoughts of the author while painting
these images of an unnatural world.

Artist's Interpretation

8. "In the Beginning"

Dr Abe V Rotor

In the Beginning in acrylic by AV Rotor 2024

"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth."
and their connection in the human mind, truth and myth.
the start of everything, from any event, philosophy, history,
the mystery of E=mc2, its perpetual, universal reversibility.

Energy-and-matter's interchangeable, in physics and biology,
looking up into the blue sky in search of answer to the theory,
the mystery deepens, eludes the sages - "In the Beginning"-
It's the seat of our faith in what don't know, yet believe in. ~

A Moment of Serenity

Dr Abe V Rotor

A Moment of Serenity in acrylic (14"x18") by Dr. Abe V. Rotor
Living with Nature Center, San Vicente, Ilocos Sur, Oct 26 2023

Details: Birds follow the stream of light and flow of a waterfall.

A moment of serenity is all we need,
brief as it may in peace,
amidst all the throes of life we bid,
with Mother Nature at ease.

Follow the stream resting in a pond
before reaching out to sea,
the birds in the sky circling around,
gaze at them flying free.~

Green Madonna and Child

"Our Holy Lady and Child, please help us
save our dying Mother Earth."

Dr Abe V Rotor

Relief painting of Madonna and Child in acrylic AVR 2015

Faceless, shrouded with smog, seated on a volcano,

this Madonna and Child of my imagination
moved my fingers, and touched my heart and soul.
Forgive me for my irreverent interpretation.

I am a humble artist seeking meaning of art to life,

a new consciousness, a re-birth,

to bring prayer to action, our Lady and Holy Child
in saving our dying Mother Earth.~

Painting: "Childhood is Forever"

“For in every adult there dwells the child that was, and in every child there lies the adult that will be.” –John Connolly

Early childhood experiences from birth to age eight affect the development of the brain's architecture, which provides the foundation for all future learning, behavior and health. A strong foundation helps children develop the skills they need to become well-functioning adults. (Dr. Jack Shonkoff, Director Harvard Center on the Developing Child)

Dr Abe V Rotor

Art Instructor

Childhood is Forever, in acrylic on canvas by Hannah Hediko P Laurente and Harish Hamiko P Laurente, in 3 sessions, under the tutorship of the author at the Living with Nature Center, San Vicente, Ilocos Sur. August 2024,

Childhood is...

Childhood is a time in our life when everything seems perfect and wonderful.
Childhood is a world far away from the real world free from burdens and tensions.
Childhood is a period to learn and master the essentials of life and living.
Childhood is the full and harmonious development of personality in a family environment.
Childhood is living in an atmosphere of happiness, understanding and love.
Childhood is time to enjoy bedside stories, family anecdotes, and life updates.
Childhood is pure bliss, light moments, treasured memories, captured innocence.
Childhood is wishing to be older, and when in old age wishing to be younger.

Full view of the painting (20" x 28") with details shown in succeeding images.

Man - Child of Years Ago*

This is a beautiful world to the young:
Faces clouds make, and kites fly high,
In kaleidoscopic colors of the sun.
While nests on trees sweetly cry.

If not for the fish and Siberian breeze.
The fields sleep, save a songbird;
But the clock doesn't stop in hammock's ease -
A chime's urging to be heard.

Not enough is summer, transient is the game
That starts with glee and ends with sigh
As the season ends; but it is not the aim
Of the sky to make children cry.

Freud and Thoreau - these great minds before saw
What makes man, child of years ago,
Wading in a pond or climbing a bough,
His kite rising to heaven's glow.

Details: A flock of white doves playfully takes care of their fledglings and chicks in their nests, among kites hanging in the trees. Right, treetops serve as playground and home of many creatures like gecko lizard and wild bees, as well as foothold of ferns, lianas and orchids.

"White doves are symbolic of new beginnings, peace, fidelity,

love, luck and prosperity." (A Dove's Love)

Promenading is a pastime in a beautiful scenery, a happy moment communing with Nature. Right, wild fowls, reptiles, amphibians, fish and other living things abound in a pristine and unspoiled environment. They comprise the natural landscape and ecological system. A pristine environment is synonymous with “untouched,” a place where human hands have not intruded into the natural progression of life, and not corrupted by civilization.

Loafing

Oh, how we love the fields like farmers do,
But not our classmates in school though;
And Nature more than our teachers know
What the sun and rain in childhood sow.*

Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer's day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time.”- Sir John Lubbock

Fishing is but a hobby, a kind of sport friendly to nature. Here a fisherboy is not a stranger to the wildlife* indigenous to the place, indeed a manifestation of a friendly and harmonious relationship bound by a primal treaty of man and nature.

Fisherboy**

By a stream on a rock ledge many a dream grew with the water flowing, the clouds rising, the breeze whispering in a nearby tree, its shade creating images of art and fantasy.

Hours lazily passed, but how short was a day fishing, from sunrise to noon and back again when the fish would return, the bamboo pole suddenly becoming heavy with a big catch.

Other boys join the cheer, the louder the bigger the fish was, or fading with a whimper when it got away, and it was always "the big fish that got away," an adage of every fisher folk.

Away from town, away from school, away from home for a while - this freedom in innocence and adventure, the elders would call laziness, stubbornness and aimlessness in growing up.

Boys don't know the difference grownups want them to be, but wait for their own time, when childhood yields to the demands of the world, the world though big is "prison" to grownups.

They too, were children before - the "man in the boy" comes later when there are no more big fish to catch, the tree has overgrown the rock ledge and other boys are longer around.

Like birds migrating and returning, season after season in Vivaldi's refrain, and Mozart's lament, life goes on in rhythm, but time couldn't wait, while dreams sought for reality.

There are many fish in the world, the biggest to catch always a dream - fame, ideas, wealth, sacrifice, honor, popularity - aiming at these to the end, in triumph, surrender or defeat.

Years later a man in gray hair appeared, he saw a familiar boy fishing, his thoughts seemed far away, his fishing pole bending to his excitement, then snapped - it was the big fish that got away. ~

Workshop attendees include parents of children participants, as well as older art enthusiasts who comprise a separate but similar art workshop sessions at the Center conducted regularly by the author upon requests from the community, organizations and schools, such as the University of Northern Philippines.

Growing Up With Art**

Kids' World Apart from "Kids"

Take a break from computers and the mall,
confines of the small;
break the wall of idleness, go for the ball
fast and make a goal.

Solve the puzzle, some genius await you
for all you know;
left to right of the brain and back will show
a wider view of you.

Take the road rough, look ahead, move on,
from the bandwagon;
it's your adventure, and follow the sun,
sunrise to sundown. ~

* AVRotor, Don't Cut the Trees, Don't UST 2010

** avrotor.blogspot.com Living with Nature

Love the Children through Art

Dr Abe V Rotor

“They always say time changes things, but you actually
have to change them yourself.” Andy Warhol

Author demonstrates basic art under the trees.

Away from the cellphone and mall,

for a time precious however small.

“If I could say it in words there would be no reason to paint.”

- Edward Hopper

Wall mural brings nature to children in imagery.

Reach out for something a dream,

a pot of gold, morning sun beam.

“To create one’s own world takes courage.” Georgia O’Keeffe

A work of art is beautiful and never wrong.

Proudly they stand with their art,

a treasure their lives now a part.

“The main thing is to be moved, to love, to hope, to tremble, to live.”

- Auguste Rodin

Outdoor art workshop under the trees. Living with Nature arboretum.

A school: its roof,

the sky and treetops,

its walls the horizon,

its floor bare earth;

it is Nature's zone.

Shh... these children feel free,

freedom in creativity

“Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.” Pablo Picasso

Art guides children to a healthy socio-cultural life.

Time out, art is not in a hurry,

pause with nature and company.

“The job of the artist is always to deepen the mystery.” Francis Bacon

Author as guardian and tutor

Art has many expressions,
in different sessions;
shy and cautious at first,
'til released like a burst.

“I am seeking. I am striving. I am in it with all my heart.” Vincent van Gogh ~

Children's art workshop paintings

Dr Abe V Rotor

Art workshop instructor

"Childhood is forever,
in summer, all to gain;
how we, grownups, wish,
to be children again." - avr

Summer on the beach

"Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

School life scene

"Learning is a treasure that will follow its owner everywhere" - Chinese proverb

Hospital Scene

"A hospital bed is a parked taxi with the meter running" from Brainy Quote.

Three selected works of school children who participated in a summer workshop show three important values for growing up, namely

Love nature and make outdoor life part of lifestyle.
Study and play in proper balance. "All work and no play makes a dull boy."
Keep healthy and be compassionate to the sick and infirmed.

Living with Nature 3, AVR

STI Rotaract club Vigan City Integrated Art Workshop

"Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time." Thomas Merton**

Dr Abe V Rotor

Art Instructor

Living with Nature Center, San Vicente Ilocos Sur

A pool of colors

Painting with the hand beside the brush freely releases

these ardent young painters the expressions of their thoughts,

emotions, and imaginations happily and courageously.

The Hand

The hand speaks of the mind and the heart,

actions good and evil, and deed,

mirrors the spirit, cast the rainbow of life;

imprint of one's life indeed.

Workshop on Integrated Art attended by officers and members of Rotaract Club of STI College, Metro Vigan Ilocos Sur, at the author's residence. August 11, 2019

The Way

Wonder to where the road leads,

the stream of life flows,

the stars in time and space,

as a man or woman grows.

Red Sky

Rage, rage, rage!

when the Being is gone

and life an empty stage.

Protolife

Living but for a moment like passing breeze,

haploids of heredity searching their other halves - -

the wholeness of procreation - omnipotent,

singular, mysterious, beyond man's grasp.

Crossing the Bar*

For though from out our bourne of Time and Place

The flood may bear me far,

I hope to see my Pilot face to face

When I have crossed the bar.

*Last stanza of Crossing the Bar is an 1889 poem by Alfred, Lord Tennyson. It is considered that Tennyson wrote it in elegy; the narrator uses an extended metaphor to compare death with crossing the "sandbar" between river of life, with its outgoing "flood," and the ocean that lies beyond [death], the "boundless deep", to which we return. (en.wikipedia.org)

AUTHOR's NOTE: The original title given by the painter is "Prison in the Sky"

Home, Sweet Home - The Bahay Kubo

Above the doves of peace and unity,
the glow of burning light of the city;
endlessly rages the sea down below,
belies this bastion of long ago,

Workshop participants take pride in showing their works
and in interpreting them individually.

Workshop participant shows demo work of author which he won in
a raffle among his fellow participants at the end of the session.

Participant stands before a mural painted by the author. His work is
reminiscent of the Impressionism movement in France at the end of
the 18th century. Dynamic movements of arts can be traced invariably
and often unconsciously in the works of young artists and enthusiasts.

* August 11, 2019 - Rotaract clubs bring together people ages 18-30 to exchange ideas with leaders in the community, develop leadership and professional skills, and have fun.‎ Rotaract originally began as a Rotary International youth program in 1968 at Charlotte North Rotary Club in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States, and has grown into a major Rotary-sponsored organization of over 10,904 clubs spread around the world and 250,792 members in 184 countries. Motto: Self Development - Fellowship Through Service

** Thomas Merton (1915-1968) was a writer and Trappist monk at Our Lady of Gethsemani Abbey in Kentucky. His writings include such classics as The Seven Storey Mountain, New Seeds of Contemplation, and Zen and the Birds of Appetite. Merton is the author of more than seventy books that include poetry, personal journals, collections of letters, social criticism, and writings on peace, justice, and ecumenism. ~

Sweet Memories of Childhood with Nature in 4 Paintings with Verses

"Oh, how we love the fields like farmers do,
But not our classmates in school though;
And Nature more than our teachers know
What the sun and rain in childhood sow." - avr

Paintings and Verses by Dr Abe V Rotor

Bring Home the Waterfalls

Art Workshop for Children before a wall mural by the author in his family
residence (Living with Nature Center) in San Vicente Ilocos Sur, 2017.

Bring home the waterfalls
to make it cool and green,
and grow ferns and mosses
on the wall like screen.

To deaden the roar of cars
with sweet hissing sound,
break away the stillness
where its water is bound.

Shower the scorched earth
but make the summer longer
for the kids to play around
until the season is over.

Lend beauty to the arts,
in painting, verse and song,
in solace and meditation
from the maddening throng. ~

Children Fishing after a Heavy Rain

Painted from childhood memory by AVRotor, acrylic on canvas, 2002

Oh, how we love the fields like farmers do,
But not our classmates in school though;
And Nature more than our teachers know
What the sun and rain in childhood sow.
Symbiosis and Synergy of Life,
and Unity in Diversity

Dr Abe V Rotor
Workshop Instructor

Symbiosis* and Synergy** of Life in acrylic on canvas 30"x40" by Alas 5 Films Group University of Northern Philippines, with finishing touches by the author as critic and instructor, 2024,

Two phenomena of life - symbiosis and synergy,
present the brighter side of Darwinian evolution;
not only the fittest survive the test, but unity
and harmony, the key to diversity and stability.

*Symbiosis is any type of a close and long-term biological interaction between two biological organisms of different species, termed symbionts, be it mutualistic, commensalistic, or parasitic. In 1879, Heinrich Anton de Bary defined it as "the living together of unlike organisms."

**Synergy is an interaction or cooperation giving rise to a whole that is greater than the simple sum of its parts. The term synergy comes from the Attic Greek word συνεργία synergia from synergos, συνεργός, meaning "working together". Synergy is similar in concept to emergence. Wikipedia

Migratory birds, detail of painting

Migrating birds fly over the landscape
settle down for a while to rest,
finding it an abode, suitable and safe,
a habitat of peace and caress.

*In 2024, World Migratory Bird Day was celebrated on May 11 in the spring and again on October 12 in fall. The conservation theme this year is Protect Insects, Protect Birds, and focuses on the importance of insects as essential food sources for migratory birds. World Migratory Bird Day 2024 | U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

Monarch butterflies, detail

From the North down South across,
seasons and boundaries,
and back home the following year -
these majestic butterflies!

*Danaus, commonly called tigers, milkweeds, monarchs, wanderers, and queens, is a genus of butterflies. Migratory in nature Monarch butterflies don't spend winter hibernating but move down in huge numbers down South such as in Mexico where they spend their lives and breed, then return up North with their progeny when it's spring in North America. The same pattern is observed in other parts of the world. The biology of Danaus leaves a lot of mystery scientists are still studying. AVR

Young Mountaineers, details of painting

There's more than reaching the top on a mountain;
conquer the summit and you conquer fear;
an adventure, in a song, to climb every mountain
thereafter, inside you the biggest fear.

* Mountain climbing is an adventurous experience as it teaches people how to overcome their fears and face their challenges. It is not easy to conquer such great heights, it scares off the toughest of people but the thrill makes it worthwhile.

Mountain climbing, a beautiful adventure

Mountaineering* is beautiful,
Homo ludens'** man's game for fame,
defying risk of life and limb and all,
all for glory its highest aim.

*There's an incredible view at the top of a mountains that gives a feeling of joy and victory. Climbing is superb for fitness, requiring strength, power and endurance.** Homo ludens means "man, the player" as compared to Homo sapiens (man, the thinker), Homo faber (man, the builder) and Homo spiritus (the praying man). AVR

Parrots, Rosellas* and Parakeets, details of painting

Parrots - imitators of human voice and sound,
so with Rosellas and the native Tariktik**;
Parakeets - most common bird pet in cages;
what is freedom? If only they can speak.

*Rosellas are in a genus that consists of six species and nineteen subspecies. These colourful parrots from Australia are in the genus Platycercus which means "broad-tailed" or "flat-tailed", reflecting a feature common to the rosellas and other members of the broad-tailed parrot tribe. A parakeet is a small- to medium-sized species of parrot, in multiple genera, that generally has long tail feathers. It has a lifespan of 5 to 8 years, and longer in the wild living with its flock.
**Tariktik is hornbill, now a threatened species. The reason for decline is its habitat destruction, hunting and poaching. It is illegal to hunt, capture or possess rufous hornbills under Philippine Law RA 9147.

A Search for Wildlife*, details

They are all around but you don't see them
in their abode hiding or in camouflage;
active in the day or night - or in between,
among trees, in a stream or in a cave.

*Wildlife refers to undomesticated plants and animals which abound in nature without having been introduced or domesticated by man. Together with other forms of life formed themselves into a dynamic system we call ecological system. Ecosystems dominate natural habitats of countless organisms living together in a state of homeostasis.

Rose Garden
A Bed of Roses in the Wild, details

"A rose is a rose is a rose is a rose."
Gertrude Stein said when asked what is a Rose.
"Sacred Emily" 1913.

Exquisite Flowers of a Rose, details

In The Little Prince, there's but a single rose plant
the Little Prince loved so much.
"How beautiful you are!" he once exclaimed
"Yes, I know." she answered in vanity.
On his visit here on Earth the Little Prince
encountered a garden of roses
so common he soon realized.
Yet the more he loved his only rose on his planet.
What makes a rose so lovable?

A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus Rosa, in the family Rosaceae, or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars.

Rainbow Butterfly
Rainbow butterfly, an experimental art

The rainbow butterfly carries a symbolism -
a deep spiritual meaning, representing hope,
happiness, renewal, and the promise
of better things to come. Don't give up.
don't.

A dream about a colorful butterfly often symbolizes positive change, joy, creativity, new beginnings, or spiritual messages. Consider the butterfly's colors and your feelings within the dream for a deeper understanding. The vibrant colors of the butterfly in your dream suggest feelings of joy, creativity, and optimism. Internet

Prism* on Wings on various planes, detail

On Wings of Song by Felix Mendelssohn** -
it's a butterfly whenever i play it on violin,
fluttering in early sunshine in the garden,
a rainbow on wings in a sacred hymn.

*Prism bends light into rainbow colors, its acronym ROYGBIV ("ROY G. BIV" is an acronym for the colors of the rainbow: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. This song tells the tale of a man named Roy G. Biv who, over the course of his rather bizarre life, experiences the full spectrum of what the world has to offer.)
** German composer and pianist (1809-1847), Mendelssohn is considered a renaissance man thanks to his diverse intellectual pursuits. As a child prodigy, he mastered piano, sight reading, violin and viola in his youth. ~

Award-winning Alas Sinko Films, University of Northern Philippines
Kristian Jed Dabo, Vince John Ponce, Ken Artajos, Daren Rued Castigo, Beaver Aurellius Carmello, Jericko James Tano, Alvin Lloyd Gampayon, Troy Darren M Reototar, Japer Sotelo, pose with the author, in red shirt. ~

Living at Peace with Nature

Floor-to-wall mural by the author
Living with Nature Center

A make-believe scene of the sea
in its ebb at its rugged shore,
a place to be happy and free
for two friends in their leisure.

Parakeets in courtship, LNC

Don't disturb the couple, don't;
if you were in their place
as people onto you, won't;
instead, give them solace.

Head of a deer reconstructed, LNC

Angry and scared for both,
as a deer hangs on the wall;
it's a sad message in thought,
a reminder of the Fall.

Catching the sunbeam on a mural, Lagro QC

It's a dream world to this child;
to us, in art and fantasy.
Would she ever catch her dream?
Guide her to the true story.

Playing with the waterfall on a mural, LNC

She used to play with the falls
in situ in her younger days.
Today, by reminiscence,
in thanksgiving and praise.

Posing before a wall mural of nature, Lagro QC

"I 'm part of Nature." she proclaims,
in a city where she lives.
Seldom had she the time and chance
to take what Nature freely gives.

A make-believe scene of a curious boy catching a kalaw
on a wall mural in Lagro, QC
“What I like about photographs is that they capture a moment that’s gone forever, impossible to reproduce.” – Karl Lagerfeld

The photo that you took with your camera is the imagination you want to create with reality.” – Scott Lorenzo ~

Author as tutor of Aiten, grand nephew.
Drawing demonstration in a summer art workshop for children.

A moment of peace with the living world on the wall.

Green ladies - defenders of nature.

What a joyous company with nature!

A make-believe waterfall on the wall reminds
of the mythical Pierian Spring.

Follow and catch the sunbeam before it is gone.

“The most beautiful discovery true friends make is that they can grow separately without growing apart.” – Elisabeth Foley
Smiling with nature on the wall.

Details of Mural by AVRotor 2008

Wish the dawn comes early,
the tides kind and low,
the bay calm and creaseless,
and time moves slow.

Wish the wind to build up
to a frightful rage,
the waves lap the shore
to test courage.

Wish the picnic in another time
and let the plans be gone;
too mean, or too naïve, the sea,
it waits for no one.

Wish whichever mood the sea,
lovers are blinded by ire,
ease and danger, in a drama
close to water and fire. ~

Childhood Memories

Autumn in summer

Ambiance of Autumn in summer in the Philippines

in acrylic by the author c 2002

Childhood is when nobody misses
The morning before the sun rises,
Before the herons stake for fish,
And finches chirp in the trees.

War is fought with kites and fishing poles,
In hide-and-seek and barefoot races;
Faith grows with seasons the sky extols,
Virtues all that friendship embraces.

Summer is short, rainy days are long,
All these are but passing imagery,
For the young can’t wait, yet all along
The years, remains a lasting memory. ~

Mysterious Faces and Figures in the Woods

Jungian archetypes come alive

Dr Abe V Rotor

Faculty-in-charge, former SPU-QC Museum

Light in the Woods AVR, 1994 acrylic Painting, 36" x 48” by AV Rotor,

former St. Paul University Museum, QC

After the old St Paul museum (SPUQC) was phased out to give way to a "modern" one last year, some mysterious events - real or imaginary - have been observed on the murals, paintings and other artifacts that were the original centerpieces of the legendary museum established in 1994.

Among them is the appearance of mysterious faces and figures, such as this case: Mysterious Faces and Figures in the Woods.

The original story - The Face of Christ - Image or Illusion was written in 1995, the year when school guests discovered a figure on a painting appearing as the face of Christ. (Please see reprint below.)

This painting was the first item to grace the newly opened museum to mark the celebration of the tricentennial of St Paul of Chartres or SPC, the congregation of the Paulinian sisters who run the school. It inspired me to write a book, Light in the Woods, using the painting's photo for its cover. The book was dedicated to Pope John Paul II on his visit 1n 1995 on the occasion of World Youth Day. Cardinal Jaime Sin, Fr James B Reuter and Sister Teresita Bayona, then college president, endorsed the book, and presented it to the Holy Father.

Published by Megabooks, 1995, dedicated to Pope John Paul II,

on his visit to the Philippines, in celebration of World Youth Day.

For fifteen years the painting, popularly known to the Paulinian community as The Face of Christ, found a permanent place in the museum until 2011, when the museum was totally renovated. The painting lost its original home. So with seven murals, and other items, which were transferred to other places on the campus. I had just left SPUQ then, due to old age and poor health - after fifteen years as professor and caretaker of the museum.

I sat down and looked at the painting for the last time. It evoked a mysterious feeling, as I touched the trees, the running stream, the rocks, and finally, the image. His eyes were moist, so with mine. I said, "Goodbye." He just looked at me. For a long time. I took a photo of the icon, and whispered, "Thank you," and left, never to see the old museum again.

I compared the photo I took last with previous photos. Why, the painting has not changed at all! Until ... on closer examination I was surprised to see hidden images other than those I saw before. Perhaps, I have grown old to see images the young is not so keen to observe. Perhaps, my perception is more of parting than welcome, memories rather than action. Memories are best preserved with tranquility, humility and peace. It is easy to settle down by the fireplace.

But the painting, I realized, has a message to our troubled world as can be seen from these mysterious figures. It's more than a face, it is more than a piece of art, it is more than the museum and the school community. The depth of these message is a measure of man's awareness of his relationship with his Creator, of his obedience and devotion, his concern for his fellowmen and the deteriorating environment. It is a test of man, the human being.

Uppermost pair of eyes in the painting, biggest of the three pairs

Left pair of eyes, most prominent and pathetic. All three pairs of eyes have a common expression of sadness. There is something strange in them after a longer look - compassionate.

Cross lying on the ground, as if it is broken and abandoned

Man and a woman emerging from the thicket toward the source of light

Reclining lady (center) beside a tree on the rocks (facing right),

with other figures around.

Standing human figure with outstretched arms, facing right.

Note light flooding his face and body.

Profile of a well-dressed human figure, facing right

Human figure stripped and tied to a tree, facing left.

There is a similar figure on the other tree.

Idyllic life on the farm, painting in acrylic by AV Rotor

”

Women Liberation from conventional role in the home and family, to do what men can in practically all fields of endeavor.. The breed of Tandang Sora and Joan of Arc’s local version, Gabriela Silang, comes to the picture in this period. Recently at one time five world leaders were women sitting side by side with men plotting the course of world affairs.

Wednesday, February 25, 2026

National Art Month February 2026 Part II: Ecological Art Evolution in Our Times. "Earth, the beautiful place we call home, needs some Tender Loving Care, through art.

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